A Fable For The Curious – Ruled

For all its many inherent faults, the internet, and especially social media, is a wonderful tool for those of us in the music business who are always on the hunt for new bands, new experiences and new sounds. So, when this quartet from Teesside contacted PM via our Facebook page to see if we would be interested in casting our critical gaze over their debut opus, we naturally said “sure, send it our way…”.

And, we’re glad they did, because a damn fine wee selection of tunes it is and all. Claiming to draw upon influences as diverse as Metallica, the Foo Fighters, Black Stone Cherry and Biffy Clyro, AFFTC gladly do not fall into any pigeonhole which would see them sit comfortably alongside any of the aforesaid.

From the opening, in-your-face salvo of ‘What A Difference A D Makes’ through the deceptive aggression of ‘I Hide’, the haunting opening of ‘Save The Day’, the beguiling ‘Calm Silence’, the chugging chant of ‘Born Again’, the stunning underpinned riff of the mis-named ‘Simplicity’ to the classic rock fuelled riffology of closer ‘Don’t Say Goodbye’, this is an album just jam-packed with solid NWOBHM-influenced metal, but combined with modern sensibilities.

The rhythm section of Michael Heaton and Nigel Waterfall-Brown underpin everything with aplomb and impressive cohesion, while Mark O’Hare’s vocals are delivered with a clinical cleanliness yet with enough dirt under their fingernails to make them stand out from the norm.

Tell this tale with 6.5/10.

Check out A Fable For The Curious for yourself here: http://www.facebook.com/AFFTC/app_2405167945

They play Middlesborough University on June 30th, Glasgow Pivo PIvo on July 15th and The Snooty Fox in Wakefield on July 27th if you want to catch them live.

 

About Mark Ashby

no longer planetmosh staff