Simp Vader are a South Auckland alternative rock band, heavily influenced by the Shoegaze movement, who were formed by Rory Maddren (vocals, guitar) and Josh Banning-Taylor (lead guitar) towards the end of 2020. With the arrival of Branden Pritchard (drums) and Scott Parker (bass, backing vocals) they have been working on recording their debut EP this year, and this is the first track to be released. All The Time is self-produced, and for such a new outfit, they must be commended on getting a strong overall sound and as one would expect, the layers are all brought together with guitar effects and vocals. The drums provide some cut through, while the bass is quite low in the mix and sounds as if it is being played on a synth as opposed to strings, but has just the right amount of depth and reverb to provide the foundation.
If there had been an outside producer, then I am sure the guys would have benefited as there are times when the vocals are not quite right and having an external point of view would have been useful. Music like this has no room for anything which isn’t perfect, and there are a few times when to my ears Rory is just slightly off-key, but I must also confess that it is rare for me to listen to much from this genre. If this style of music is your thing, then you may well get more from it than I did, but even so it will be interesting to see how this group progresses in the future.
Rating: 5/10
