Thursday, December 15, 2016

Halfsour - Charm School EP

Boston's Halfsour creates power pop with punch and an uncompromising attitude.  There is a challenging note to the vocals and the drums are pummeled hard and high in the mix.  Really, everything is high in the mix, with the effect that you think you are standing right in front of the stage while Halfsour runs through a six song set.  In fact, the six songs are on Charm School, an EP that follows their excellent LP release from earlier this year, Tuesday Night Live.  So the bad news it that the band aren't live and in front of you.  The good news is that you can own this EP and play it any time -- yes, even when you aren't wearing any pants.

All six songs are keepers (one of the wonderful things about EPs, I think), but you'll likely be sold on the set after listening to the first and second tracks, "Ten Year Tenure" and "Vinyl Siding".  The following "Scenes From A Coach" sounds like the sort of song that becomes a fan favorite with every aware person in the audience singing along.  Track five, "Ice Cream Dinner", is the first song in the set that slows the tempo and lets that band display a bit of nuance.  But even on this one, the guitar fizzes and crackles and the band goes loud on the chorus.  Face it folks, these kids like to rock, and they do it well.

With Charm School, Halfsour has twice proved in 2016 to be a fresh and worthy set of faces on the indie rock scene.  You need no more evidence, get the EP.

Charm School is available in digital, vinyl and cassette formats.  See the Bandcamp link below.




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Bandcamp for Charm School EP


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