Punk Promise
Newcastle three-piece Shin Jin Rui launch their assault on the contemporary music scene with a four-track disk that drips with just enough attitude and reeks of just enough enthusiasm to satisfy sonic hunger as effectively as a drunken KFC at 4am does the gastric kind.
From 'Dirty Bomb''s three note guitar note strum to 'Eternity Is Loaded''s bouncing bassline and clattering drums (by the way, this quote mark/apostrophe quagmire is doing my nut as much as it is yours) it's an enjoyable ride - especially the deadpan delivered lyrics of the latter.
With influences ranging from Modern Lovers to Sonic Youth, you'd expect it to be an ironical and melancholic affair - and you'd be right. However, what saves it is the hard-as-nails production (the band sound as if they were recorded in Dr Crippen's kitchen) and the glorious fun of it all.
The perky punk-funkster 'HMS Unable' deserves a mention too; as it features a killer bassline bolstered to a satisfyingly fat riff and a wonderfully distressed vocal. Worryingly though, the chorus can't seem to shake a chord progression straight out of The Libertines back-up bag and a hilariously lacklustre squeal halfway through.
Only 'Not Here' sails too close to the dusty shores of blandness - though judging by the pokerfaced delivery of the absurd lyrics, it's probably intentional and therefore immediately forgivable - especially as they made me chuckle for a good couple of minutes - in particular the reference to "biscuits in the tin". Genius.
With radio play from XFM, BBC Radio Newcastle and an enthusiastic response from NME (though I can't fathom who really gives a shit what those muppets think these days), Shin Jin Rui have got the tools - even if they haven't demonstrated all of the talent yet. As a work in progress though, this E.P. shows the band has indisputable promise and may yet assail the higher echelons of the charts.