Split EP
This four way split vinyl EP features tracks from Annabel, Empire! Empire!, Joie De Vivre and Reptilian. It's hard to big Annabel up enough, after giving their EP full marks back last year (which is incidentally still glued to my turntable) it's a real pleasure to hear a new track from them and Decisions, Decisions is as melodic and bouncy as you'd hope, uplifting and quirky but with a touch of lyrical seriousness, it gets under your skin and has you up and moving from the first note. Empire! Empire! Are on great form on their offering The Horror Of Riovanes driven by angsty vocals and a great melody which chugs along at a pace until half way through when it slows to allow the fantastic (lazy) riff to take over.
On the flip side Joie De Vivre give us a sweet little tune which has tones of 90s college rock at the start but then turns over a tuneful emo leaf half way through, great vocals and blasts of brass really make it sing. Last up is The Reptilian with their brilliantly abrasive vocals, always sounding just on the edge of breaking down into incoherence but never getting there and nicely off kilter guitars, this is a great tune from them. All in all four great tracks nicely packaged. Cyls Records never disappoint.