Battle - Back to Earth

by Anthony Strutt

published: 11 / 11 / 2006

Label: Transgressive Records
Format: CD

intro

First-rate indie guitar rock on debut mini album from London-based band, Battle

Jason Bavandan, Tim Scudder, James Ellis and Oliver Davies have finally got around to releasing their debut album at last. While ‘Back to Earth’ is a lovely piece of work, we were expecting a full album, but this mini album is better than most bands full career’s worth of work. It opens with ‘Wicked Owl’, which is a tight beat based number with licks worthy of the great R.E.M. Jason has complete control of his vocals and they just hang in the air, waiting for you to pick up on them. ‘When It Hits Full Throttle' is just sublime. ‘Tendency’, a previous single, just jumps straight out at you. It is beautiful and worthy of another release. ‘Beautiful Dynasty’ meanwhile recalls ‘Paint It Black’ with its guitar intro. Jason’s charming vocals, which are reminiscent of Mark Eitzel, tell a story of real life in the real streets that we live in. On ‘One More Night’ Battle sound like a stronger version of Babyshambles. The guitar sits well with the Hammond organ which is played by Jason , and it has their first lead guitar break on here. It sounds totally lustful. ‘I Never Stopped’ sounds like an updated Adorable, while ‘Isabelle’ is a re-recorded version of their debut single, and is slick and powerful. The more I listen to this band the better it is and the more I fall in love with them. They add a touch of the past to their grooves but make it sound very fresh and are always worth going to see play live. ’Easy To Listen To’ ends the mini album. It has a wacky slow beat, and is as sexy as early charming tracks by the Smiths. One of the best albums of 2006 !.

Track Listing:-

1 Wicked Owl
2 Tendency
3 Beautiful Dynasty
4 One More Night (Adrian Hall Mix)
5 I Never Stopped
6 Isabelle
7 Easy to Listen To

Label Links:-

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