Cougar Microbes

The biggest and greatest buzz is discovering a new band, someone fresh that can rock the fuck out without compromising the clarity of their killer tunes, someone who you can say to your mates “you have to check these guys out”…and sit back and watch your kudos sky rockets. My intention has always been sharing good music, still the kudos is always welcome!

If you’ve bumped into me recently and we’ve talked music you will know of the band that has my full attention at the moment, If you’ve listened to SW1 Radio, the radio show I guest on you’ll have heard their tracks constantly played and their gigs often recommended…so which band has got Surge so excited I hear you ask?

Step forward Watford quartet SPY CATCHER. Formed at the turn of the year by former members of Cry for Silence and current members of Gallows and Haunts, they come fully-equipped with an Arsenal of Killer Rock tunes.  They have already been treating our ears to some cracking live performances in London and the South-East throughout the month of April (Old Blue Last, Camden Crawl, and Barfly).  The simply awesome ‘Music That My Dad Likes‘ was recommended in Kerrang‘s ‘10 Songs You Should Hear Now’ and that same track was Radio 1’s ‘Unsigned Track Of The Week’…you couldn’t ask for a better first few months as a band…so it’s time for all of us to sit up and take note!!!

What makes Spy Catcher unique is that their vocals don’t rely on the predictable sound you hear in every band that’s surfacing at the moment, it’s raw and throaty yet surprisingly tuneful at the same time. I especially like the diversity in Steve Sear’s vocals, when he hits the higher ranges on ‘Music That My Dad Likes‘, that raw throaty vocal steps aside to make way for booming Matt Bellamy-esque tones.

Killer tracks like ‘Good Times‘ and ‘You Got Soul‘ have the most amazing vocal hooks; I challenge you to walk away from a show (or listen of their demo) without singing a line from either song. The former providing the heart-felt chorus ”…these are not good times…these are hard times”, a possible insight into the current financial state the world is in at the moment. The latter possesses a superb pre-chorus hook, “… there was something about your shoes…” which leads perfectly into the infectious foot-stomping chorus.

Spy Catcher have the right song writing formula, the one that some bands take years to find and that some others never find…they should bottle their secret formula and sell some to bands that are poisoning our airwaves at the moment. I can’t wait to hear more from them on record, for now I’ll have to make do with their Demo and live onslaught.

As you’ll have probably noticed I haven’t compared Spy Catcher to any other bands, I’ll leave you to make your own decisions of who they sound like, consider this your introduction or eye-opener…now crank up the 2 tracks below and enjoy the best rock band the UK has produced for ages, ‘Good Times‘.

MP3′s:

Spy Catcher – Music That My Dad Likes

Spy Catcher – You Got Soul

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This is the second post from guest contributor Surge. More to come from him soon.

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What the hell is The Tupolev Ghost? I hear you ask…beats me, but if you were to ask who the hell are The Tupolev Ghost (TTG)?…well that’s where I can assist!

TTG are a Post-Hardcore band from Cambridge (Yes, British Talent!), drawing many influences from bands which rank highly within my CD collection so of course I instantly relate to their sound. That’s not to say they are predictable or some kind of copycat band, their uniqueness is prevalent throughout their self titled EP.

Vocals in any band are vital and what I like about this gang’s vocals is that they are not afraid to sound English. Far too many bands pollute the airways with generic American vocals despite hailing from these shores; I have nothing against American vocals, I just prefer they come from American bands. The excellently delivered speak/sing/shout blueprint of TTG forms a tight and natural bond with the music.

Straight from the imaginatively titled intro ‘Untitled‘ into ‘Zeroes and Noughts” you can tell this band means business with their stampeding rhythm section and intricately layered guitars akin to early At the Drive-In and in some instances Minus the Bear. In my opinion ‘Diagrams‘ is the standout track, rhythmically cutting yet hypnotic all the same drawing you in with its staccato riffs and melodic breakdowns. You can’t help but walk away singing the line “…put pen to paper, spell it out for me…” and when you walk away with a line in your head you know you’ve succumbed to a cool vocal hook.

The next track on this mini-album is the truly epic “Giant Fucking Haystacks”, colossal by name – colossal by nature. It marauds through Fugazi-esque riffs with early At the Drive-In style arpeggios for company and melody; I cannot wait to hear this live! The band then show a darker side on ‘The Night‘ where again a Fugazi influence is evident on this angular slice of post-hardcore bliss. The middle 8 breakdown is simple, effective and sublime all at once as the track crescendos and picks up momentum before exiting to the soundtrack of an arpeggio duel and a brief riff-tastic flourish.

The final instalment ‘Our Great Destroyer‘ reminds me of the intelligent UK post-hardcore that The Copperpot Journals used spoil us with not so long ago, this can only be deemed a compliment.

The Tupolev Ghost are notorious for turning the volume up as high as they can for their shows and destroying all in their path, upon listening to this I say…BRING IT ON!!…yes even you Mr Haystacks!!!

MP3:

The Tupolev Ghost- Diagrams

‘The Tupolev Ghost‘ self-titled EP is out now on Big Scary Monsters

Buy it now on Amazon

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This is the first guest post on Cougar Microbes by the legendary Surge and hopefully there will be alot more coming from him in the coming months.

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