Release: Octopon (EP)
Band: Dark Stares
Release Date: Out Now
‘Octopon’, for anyone that’s interested, is in fact the lost homeland of Ren, the hero of a fictional series called ‘Pirates Of Dark Water’. Its not really clear why St Albans four piece Dark Stares have opted to name their new EP after it, as the band’s distorted rock melodies are more grounded in reality than fantasy, but they’re not too far off with the word ‘dark’.
The EP paces its way through the dark side with growling vocals masked under heavy bass-lines and sharp guitar solos. First track ‘Bad Machine’ has a pounding riff that will haunt your memory for days. It sets the scene nicely for the remaining tracks; a blaze of grungy notes and sleazy vocals.
It’s not all serious business, though. There’s a sense of fun in the tracks which Dark Stares might have picked up from their previous support slots from comedy-rock icons The Darkness. You can almost imagine the band smiling crudely in between snarls in the closing track ‘Blackfyre’. There’s even a slight hint of the sleazy glamour of Audioslave, in their ‘Cochise’ days.
‘Octopon‘ is an EP with a great deal of swagger, packing punchy riffs into the mix. It’s a strong release that considering Dark Stares are a band with only one previous album under their belt.
7/10
Reviewer: Natalie Gardiner
