Bats are currently building up a nice little fan base around Dublin. They’re listed a favourites on several notable music blogs, E-Zines, stores and magazines. To Tickets There, they sound like a mix of Chop, chop, stop! Indie with a tea spoon of metal. Once again, I haven’t heard their EP or seen them live. This review is based on the tracks they have on their official MySpace.
Opening song, Atom and Eve isn’t really a song. It’s more a mix of several styles, none of them their own, all thrown together into a blender. More than likely they mastered the song by cutting up a load of demo’s tapes and sticking them together randomly. It kind of starts, then the bottom falls out, then they add something to keep it going (like the blatant Metallica, Creeping Death rip of riff that pop’s up occasionally) but then it all stops again. The song never gets a chance to breath and find it’s feet leaving it a boneless little nuisance. The lyrics follow the same geeky, superhero rubbish so many other bands insist on spuing out these days. If you want to hear a real singer growl, listen to Joey Wilson from the Future Kings of Spain instead.
Next up is These Only Lay Egg’s. The opening bass/guitar n drums intro sounds like the first song you ever wrote when you picked up a guitar. Kind of annoying, like slow punk, without the anger. Once again the song lacks any sort of character and doesn’t pull you in, in the slightest. It’s a real shame that Irish singers feel such a desperate need to sing like all those California bands. That annoying little emo twinge in their voice drives me up the wall. A nice crunchy bass solo brings hope three minutes into the song and the ‘danger’ set’s in…..only to disappear again. The minute they start the build its gone, which would be fine, but they never deliver, not on these tracks anyway. Think they asked Wham to finish the last minute of the track.
Before I get into the third song, I’d love if someone could message me and explain why Geek’s have managed to take over the underground? It’s not just Bats (and believe me, they’re no where near the worst out there. At least Bats can play…just not formulate songs is all). I know Weezer were cool, but that doesn’t mean everyone has to drop their balls and whine all the time. Start thinking for yourselves people! You aint gonna write a good song, that means something to you, when all you do is rip off anything you can from the past. Has anyone ever heard 80’s Hardcore bands? They did all this better and they weren’t geeks about it.
Last song of the review, Death to Kent Hovind, is pretty much what it says, an attack of controversial conspiracy theorist, Kent E. Hovind. Nothing to praise, noting to slag. Possibly their best song on MySpace though, Not as long, or as thought out as the other two but more structured at least. It manages to sound like a real song.
Tickets There says – Try to catch them live, there are a few moments that sound like they’d be mental with a PA behind them. Definitely not a favourite though (I’m sure they care )
'Ticket's There' - Irish and International Music Blog 