EXIT FOR FREEDOM –
Exit for Freedom (Self release 2012)
Upon my initial listen of Newcastle's Exit For Freedom's self-titled EP I was quite surprised by what I heard. When looking into this band on several sources, I'd seen them labelled as progressive thrash, and with this in mind I went into the EP expecting to hear a style of thrash along the lines of classic Watchtower or Mekong Delta. While there is certainly some thrash influence in here, the EP shows stronger influence from progressive and alternative metal than any thrash. The band list bands such as Trivium, Machine Head and Between the Buried and Me as influences, this list of bands giving a much more accurate representation of the band's sound. Going back and listening to the EP again with this knowledge led a renewed impression of the music. While not being at all what I was expecting, and suffering from inconsistent song writing, there was quite a bit here to sink my teeth into.
The EP opens with “Burn”. Clocking in at over 11 minutes in length it's by far the longest track on offer here. Fortunately the composition here is also quite strong, and the track manages to hold one's attention throughout. The track opens with some clean guitars played over keyboards, with the bass, drums and distorted guitars gradually introducing themselves into the fold. There are several tempo changes throughout the track, plenty of short guitar leads thrown throughout the track, highlighted closer to the end of the track with a fantastic solo section, with guitarists Dylan Brocklelsby and Blake Manefield both contributing some stellar leads. There are plenty of little drum fills and some interesting progressive drumming to vary things up a bit. The keyboards are used sparingly throughout, and as such add an interesting layer to the track without being overbearing at any time. “Drowning Under Misfortune” is next, a decent groove metal track. The drums are the real stand out part of this track, with a solid tribal beat playing over a doomy riff to create an effective opening, and a section in the middle portion where the drums take centre stage, with plenty of fills being thrown out in the open.
“Voices” gets things back on track, a strong cut with the band showing the full extent of their thrash influences. The variety of blistering fast riffs and pounding grooves is played out to maximum effect here to make for one stinking heavy track that's sure to get the pit going in a live setting. If there was any fault to be found here, it would be the solos. While perfectly serviceable, the lead work here is the least inspiring of the EP. I do feel it suffers a bit for the weaker solos, but in the context of the track the leads work well enough to not be a total disappointment. EP closer “Not My Fight” is another up tempo track with slightly more progressive influence than anything else here. Again, drummer Luke Wilson proves the stand out here with a ton of variation and a very strong performance throughout. The solos on display here are much stronger than the lead work in “Voices”, but at the same time I found the riffs throughout the song far less inspiring. As such I found this track a little lacking as the EP closer.
Production of the EP is generally solid. The guitars have a digital, processed sound to them, and tend to sound a little on the thin side. Generally speaking this sound actually works reasonably well within the context of this EP, although the lead tones could be beefier. Toby Haslam's bass has a suitably fat but pronounced sound to it, not usually straying too far from what the guitars are playing, but occasionally contributing some interesting licks. The drums sound great here, with a suitably punchy snare and some well pronounced kicks. Given the drumming was a highlight of this EP it's pleasing that they also sound exceptional. Vocals here vary between growls and semi-shouted cleans, and sit nicely in the mix. While I could nit pick about a few niggles here and there, overall this EP sounds very good, and the balance of all the instruments is just about spot on.
Overall, there's certainly potential in Exit For Freedom, but for me at least, I don't think they're quite there yet. While half of the tracks featured on this EP were quite strong, the remaining tracks simply don't hold up to that standard to my ears. The band are certainly a talented bunch of musicians, but I feel they will need to hone and tighten their song writing craft before they can really start to stand out from the pack of similar sounding bands doing the rounds. “Burn” and “Voices” are well worth checking out if you like your metal groovy and with those progressive and alternative influences, though.
-- Matt
