Fountains, amazing new band to follow

Double review of the so far fantastic releases from Fountains, one of the most celebrated discoveries of 2012 on Bloodbuzzed!

No Sleep EP

Discovered them on March, and their debut EP has been on repeat mode since then at home and on my Mp3, being also featured on the playlist of best songs of the year so far. All this praise is well deserved, as the London group is capable of doing something really remarkable, and quite unusual nowadays: they really blow you out.

The EP opens with the slow-burner title track "No Sleep", that from the very first second carries you away to a very special place. It's a cold & grey place, but there are still glimpses of hope (careful listen to the wonderful backing vocals from Bex). The music soars, guitars and drums find their way to scatter the clouds and Jonathan voice rises like a mantra. Epic five minutes. I remember writing that it sounded to me like The Wild Swans meeting Joy Division. What an opener.

"Insecure" offers a different side: an uptempo melody, in which guitars take more prominence, delivering raw lines that share the anger and desperation of Jonathan's tone and lyrics. And explodes, and leaves the listener longing for more.

And it does come. "You're Not Welcome" begins like "No Sleep", the guitar intro suggesting a rumbling number that turns into an abrasive mist of sound. Jonathan spokes among celestial guitar and drum melodies. The tempo accelerates, the lyrics hurt. But Fountains decide to hide their final ace with a radical change in the melody, before the concluding, relentless assault to your ears. And you don't want the song to end. 

You can download the EP right now for FREE via bandcamp. RUN and do it!!!! Amazing debut.
SCORE: 8,25/10

Easy Led
If that isn't enough, since the end of July Fountains have a new single for you to enjoy. And what a single (you can order it here)! "Easily Led" is mesmerizing. It sounds like a proper companion of the "No Sleep EP": cascades of guitars, a majestic wall of sound, gloom and light. But the combination of Jonathan and Bex singing propels the tune to another dimension. I have to hear this song live, in particular it's last minute.

Second song of the single is "Repetition". Quite a slow intro that radically drifts into a song that recalls vividly to Interpol (from the good times) or another beloved band of this blog, Motorama. Atmospheric, opressive... Another impressive tune.
Fountains - Easily Led by Beautiful Strange

SCORE: 8,5/10

5 songs so far, 5 masterpieces. Needles to say, Fountains are a band to follow closely.