The Cardinals - Hold On / Hello
It's difficult to know what to expect from a band that tolerate a front man who insists on going by the ridiculous moniker Seven. Twin that with some major ass-kissing on the press release (Seven...looks like a rock god in the making... a front man with something to say and better still worth listening to) and the expectation level is quite low. Yet when it turns out that Hold On sounds in melody like a harder version of Keane and in vocals like Sued-era Brett Anderson, it's pleasantly surprising. It's a strange combination, agreed, but hang in there – it grows on you.
Hello is more of the same – Seven's Brett-esque warbling rising over easy-on-the-ear guitar riffs and building drums – albeit with a chorus that's crying out to be sung along to by sweating crowds in stuffy gig venues. After so many all-mouth-and-no-trousers rockers proclaiming their talent, it's nice to see one that can back up the (still slightly embarrassing) PR hype. This is the second double a-side from Seven and the rest of The Cardinals and it bodes well that a lot of top notch experience has gone into their new album 'We Must Learn To Walk Again'. These tracks alone were mixed by Manic Street Preachers regular Mark Freegard and produced by Lance Thomas, whose previous successes include PJ Harvey and Simian. Looks like Manchester's about to pop out another mega-sprog.