MOUNTAIN PEAKS - WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN (I COULD HAVE BEEN MORE)
Pavlis has to apologise for a long delayed review of a scorcher of an EP.
Mountain Peaks is one of my favourite live bands on the Norwich scene. I have seen vocalist/guitarist Tim literally bleed all over his guitar for this band. It was with some trepidation that I approached this review. Indeed, I have put it off for far too long just in case I didn’t like the What Could Have Been (I Could Have Been More) EP. Turns out that I needn’t have worried and have done Mountain Peaks a massive disservice. This is a CRACKER.
Opener Jesień kicks things off with some thumping tribal drumming and melodic, almost math-rocky guitar, explodes into skramz-style vox and then settles into a mix of these two styles. A Bed of My Own Making is my highlight, starting with a brief spoken word (recalling the brilliant but almost completely unknown/forgotten Meanwhile, Back In Communist Russia) before continuing in the melodic-hardcore-meets-Midwest-emo. The fiery Amber and Red has rawer screamo sound. I Am Not Happy (With Losing) possibly best exemplifies the Mountain Peaks modus operandi of mixing melody and dissonance to powerful effect and is up there with anything that Japnoise legends envy have done. And that, from me, is very high praise indeed.
With this EP lasting around twelve minutes, the songs are short. Whilst this ensures that none outstay their welcome, I can’t help but think that stretching out a little might actually up the wow factor but that is a minor niggle. All in all, this is an impassioned and ensured work from a trio that have rapidly become something rather special.
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