My Vitriol - A Pyrrhic Victory

  by Adrian Huggins

published: 9 / 7 / 2007

Label: Xtra Mile Recordings
Format: CDS

intro

Fine comeback EP from indie guitar rockers My Vitriol who return to the fore after a six year absence from recording

I nearly spat my tea out with excitement when I saw that the new My Vitriol EP was finally here. In all honesty I had very little idea of what had happened to them in the years since tghey released their fantastic debut album, ‘Finelines’. The more I thought about the this more I got reminiscent, paranoid, worried and maybe a little in denial about the time that had elapsed since I bought that album. “Wow I loved this band and that album when it came out a few years ago” I thought. Only ‘a few years ago’ is actually 6, yes 6 years ago now. Jesus H. Christ I thought, that’s ages. Is it really that long ago? Am I really this old? What have they been doing? This has to be good with that amount of time. Press releases are wonderful things and helped answer all these questions, (barring ‘am I really that old?’). Yes indeed it was 6 whole years ago since London based indie-rockers My Vitriol released ‘Finelines’ and while this seems like a lifetime, (well in that time kids have been born and are now well into school. Some round my way probably even have ASBO’s by now), since they brought that out, but I find that rather than spending the years in rehab, ‘finding themselves in Asia’ or other rock n’ band clichés, they actually toured for three years solid off the back of ‘Finelines’. This made me pleased for the band. It is always good that that band you discovered and loved seem to attract the attention you feel they deserve. And judging by the fact that these guys seem to have been everywhere but the moon, others have caught on to the quality of this band. If nothing else this new EP gave this reviewer a wonderful trip down memory lane as it made me pick up again a fantastic album. My Vitriol make the sort of music that not only sounds fantastic, but you can literally live in it. Think Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead, Pink Floyd etc. Music that is brilliant enough on the surface but with so many layers of sound and such evocative lyrics you really can be taken somewhere else. It really is the sort of music that consumes you and can take you back. It is clear that they have not changed at all and have produced a new EP which follows on perfectly from all those years ago. What this band do superbly is use enough soundscapes and imagination but never take it too far. They know when to stop and are comfortable breaking back into fantastic and simple riffs. It is this mix of the sublime with straight forward rock-pop sensibilities that bands like Nirvana became popular with which My Vitriol have earned their success. They have perfected the heavy yet melodic approach to songwriting. Singer/guitarist Som Wardner has a hypnotically smooth voice. His breathtaking vocal style adds to the beautiful rhythms created alongside the quality riffs from guitarist Seth Taylor and bass player Carolyn Bannister. This is all held together perfectly by Ravi Kesavaram on drums. If you’re a fan of Silverchair or Incubus and the way they manage to mix of balls to the walls riffs next to stunning vocals then My Vitriol will be an irresistible lure. They are clearly a band that work incredibly well together and never just knock out some half hearted efforts for the sake of it. A hell of a lot of time seems to have gone into crafting these 4 songs. ‘A Pyrrhic Victory’ is a good taster of the band's mellower moments and the more upbeat faster songs which are the ones which seduce you in. Consisting of four tracks. this is just enough to soak the appetite but also leaves you gagging for more. ‘War of the Worlds’ opens up the EP and is a welcome return to form. It is the rockiest song with a chorus that is instantly recognisable as their sound and also one which will stick with you. ‘Toy Soldiers’ is the other of the faster songs and while it is less grandiose it has a brilliant indie anthem feeling about it. You do find yourself singing along to the chorus almost instantly. ‘Lord Knows How I’ve Tried (Mellow Version)' is very much that. It is the most mellow and dreamy song out of the four and serves as a glimpse of the band's softer moments. It is heartening to hear My Vitriol again and it is also great to hear a band that have stuck to their sound. If you think back to 2001 you could probably think of many, many bands that seem to have come and gone since then. Some of which have changed to suit whatever is popular at the time along with a few musical fads, which have come along, some still here some not. Think ‘Nu-metal’, ‘garage rock’, ‘screamo’, ‘emo’, ‘new rave’ etc. but My Vitriol have their own sound and thankfully have stayed firmly by it, without it becoming dull or predictable. I for one am salvating at the prospect of another album and cannot wait to hear it. It was worth hearing ‘Finelines’ again as it is still fresh, so the new album when it comes has a lot to live up to. If ‘A Pyrrhic Victory’ is anything to go by some of us won’t be disappointed.

Track Listing:-