Here we have the second instalment of Blindspott’s next album, Volumes. There are going to be 12 tracks in total, and when they released Volume. I earlier in the year it only showed the titles of the first three songs, with all the rest rubbed out. Now we can see the titles of the first six songs, as we have an additional three, with two more sets to go. I finally got to see these guys play earlier this year, ticking off an item on my personal musical bucket list, while I reviewed their last single, the mighty Pretty Violent to which I gave 5*’s. That song is actually on this EP, but is the final number of the three, which kicks off with Nightmare.
We all know Blindspott as a kick ass metal act who take no prisoners and are a mighty force to be reckoned with in the live environment, but it is also important to remember they have always mixed in other elements and have been masters of their own destiny doing whatever they want. So perhaps it should not be surprising that Nightmare is nothing like the blaster one would expect it to be given the title and who is performing it. I am not sure what guitar is being plucked as it doesn’t come across as an acoustic (maybe a nylon or unplugged electric?), and it combines with gentle piano to allow Damian to show just what a controlled and melodic singer he can be when the time is right. The song changes slightly at 1:20 with the introduction of a powerful grunty bass, but it is still a while before the drums come in with the piano and picked guitars being incredibly important. There is a gentle build in this, with the rock elements becoming more important, and then at 3:15 it turns into a groove-laden monster with harsh vocals, before switching into an amalgam of the styles, switching throughout until it gradually reverts back to how it was at the beginning. This track is more than seven minutes in length, and demonstrates not only power but restraint, heavily polished and controlled. To me it demonstrates so much confidence in the band as that is a hard trick to pull off.
A Perfect Storm features Sophie Maude singing alongside Damian to provide twin vocals which work incredibly as they bounce off each other: there are times when it feels more commercial with the harmonies again showing the band in a very different light with the accompaniment sitting back in the pocket. There are times when this picks up, but it also ebbs and flows, demonstrating yet another facet of Blindspott. We end with Pretty Violent, which again shows different styles of the band, allowing them to be gentle and melodic but when the guys let rip, they create a groove-driven monster which is simply epic. Incredibly melodics, with loads of light and shade for contrast, it can be as gentle as a ballad in one place and then driving Sepultura at others with the tuneful vocals quite different to the crunching guitars of Brandon and Andrew. Only two more EPs to go and then we can play the whole 12 tracks one after the other. I can’t wait.
Rating: 9/10
