New alternative rock from the growing Australian scene
The moniker 'alternative rock' covers many sins. Much like alternative medicine, only when a band becomes famous can we drop the 'alternative' from the name and see it for the generic faux-epic disappointment it can be. Not progressive enough for purists, but not commercial enough for mainstream radio, it sits in its own strange no-man's land. The one blessing is that there are so many bands that fall into this category that at some point anyone could find something they love.
Brisbane-based Dead Letter Circus is about to change musical leagues with a support slot with Muse and their own European tour. This 6-track mini-album is a fantastic taster for their forceful brand of progressive-alternative rock. Opening track 'The Mile' is attention grabbing for all the right reasons. Catchy hooks, restrained vocals and sharp production combine to create something both bordering on progressive yet accessible. Perhaps it creates too much hope, because after the beautifully building 'Lines' it starts to slide into generic noise-rock. 'Disconnect and Apply' has all the hallmarks of the earlier songs, but fails to connect in the same way. But it is marginally better than 'Are We Closer' and 'This Life Awake' which, despite the stadium-filler choruses you'd struggle to pick out of an alternative-rock police line-up. 'Alien' is a curiosity because it does draw your interest back to the music, but only serves to highlight the 'filler' in the middle of the album.
It's hard to criticise anything in this genre because essentially the only qualifying features are that it's not pop and tends to err on the side of throwing the kitchen sink into production. It would be fair to say that as purveyors of anthemic melodic alternative rock/metal Dead Letter Circus have created a solid and passionate debut. If they could develop their sound into something more distinctive as they progress, so much the better. They have a lot going for them: a solid melodic sense and excellent musicianship, as well as an excellent vocalist who doesn't overpower the more symphonic moments. Totally inoffensive and easy to like.