Hummune is a contraction of the words human and immune, meaning immune to humans. Perhaps this British trio should have called themselves Trendmune as their retro post-hardcore is a galaxy removed from most other hardcore derived dross saturating the scene these days. The most obvious influence across these three tracks is Helmet, but here there elements of Prong, Neurosis as well as a healthy respect for doom and sludge.

Groove is king on these seething slabs of stripped down hardcore, which grab you from the first bar and mesmerise with their hypnotic swing. There are moments of aggression and melancholy, and enough complexity to keep you coming back for more.

I couldn’t be more pleased that there’s a band out there making music like this – it’s utterly refreshing. It’s particularly impressive given that Hummune only formed later last year and they already sound this mature. Also, don’t be fooled by the M.R.S label, this EP is self released and is all the better for it. All three tracks can be downloaded for free from their Myspace. This is already one of my favourite releases of the year, go check it out.

I’ve spoken about those “why didn’t anyone tell me about this band before?” moments that are actually, “I was told, but I just wasn’t paying enough attention”. The last time was Baroness, this time it’s a band very much of their ilk – Welsh rockers Taint. It’s perhaps a symptom of the fact that I’m by default deeply suspicious of melodic rock (no matter how heavy), especially if it comes from punkish roots (see this thread that goes some way to explaining why). I’m so easily bored by the stuff as it’s so often disposable and shallow. At a quick pass Taint could be bundled into the once glorious but now eternally soiled sub-genre uncomfortably labelled post-hardcore. Taint however are a different beast entirely, and All Bees to the Sea is the very case in point.

Taint clearly have a keen ear for melody. All Bees to the Sea, comprising of 4 tracks, is immediate in that sense. However, rather than shelter in cookie cutter naval gazing like much of the rest of the modern post-punk crowd, Taint have clearly been bathing in the sludge-groove experimentation of the likes of Baroness and Mastodon. These 4 razor sharp tracks display a deceptive amount of complexity that never overshadows the melodic punch. There’s a psychedelic air that at times evokes the spirit of 90’s psych-punk underdogs Warrior Soul, others the post-hardcore of Prong or Helmet. However, the EP’s true Baroness inflected beauty comes to fruition on the 12 minute prog-out that is the title track – super-sized and utterly satisfying.

All this in four songs – it’s quite remarkable. All Bees to the See is the sound of a band enjoying themselves and really flexing their creative muscle – I can’t wait to hear what they come out with next!

It’s perhaps suprising given my constantly developing taste for ever more complex and ponderous music that this album arrived into my life several weeks ago and was filed in the “too damn daunting for where my head is at currently” pile after a single listen. After a several week long odyssey into drone (Earth, Sunn O))), Boris) this suddenly didn’t seem so intimidating any more, so I gave it another whirl.

Apparently lumped into the post-hardcore bucket with the likes of *shels (who also don’t belong there) The Pax Cecilia wafts evanescent over the sorry arse of any dreary musical subgenre they damn well please. Labelling them anything containing the epithet ‘core’ seems painfully beside the point. These slow building arrangements melt effortlessly from from folk to caustic hardcore to sparse drone to proggish melodic interludes. Anyone sampling opening track The Tragedy would be forgiven for thinking that this isn’t even rock music. These lengthy tracks are peppered with baroque strings, soaring guitars and subtle melodic vocals which occasionally erupt into a harrowing scream.

The sheer array of ideas and undisguised talent on display here is astonishing. That this band have done little to bother the popular consciousness is both a testament to the bravery of this album and a self fulfilling prophecy – The Pax Cecilia may well have “too damn difficult for their own good” chiselled on their tombstone, something that wouldn’t be said for the aforementioned Enio Morriconeists *shels who have the potential to really break through.

This album is made to be loved and cherished and played alone on rainy days (perhaps on long train journeys like the one from which this article is being written). This is not a happy album, and not one that you will truly grok in few listens, but like all truly exceptional albums it’s worth the effort. What’s more astonishing is that an album of this quality is being given away free. Yes, you heard me right, if you want to grace your world with this work of loveliness then it can be downloaded in its entirety for free here. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.

The vast majority of unsigned bands out there are either shit, superfluous, disposable or just copies of another band. Unfortunately, the race for a record deal is usually won by those bands sprouting in the better watered plots, and the rest of the seedlings will wither and die – such are the strains of being in band. So when I come across a band that’s really decent but is lurking in the shady, untended parts of the musical garden I immediately get a bit nervous – if someone doesn’t sign them soon, they may stop what their doing and get a proper job, which would be very bad.

New Zealand’s Photonic are one such band. Photonic is really one guy called Craig. His music has nothing to do with much of the other music out there today. Somehow he has crafted a set of tracks that is both forward leaning and backward looking. It’s also totally unclassifiable.

So where do we start with this brilliant, self-published, motley collection of vignette’s and vast-scapes he’s dubbed Recorded Contact? First and foremost, this is not metal, at least for the most part. There’s no predominant style here other than perhaps sparse, indignant hardcore reminiscent of Fugazi with post-rock tendencies drifting into Mogwai territory. However, the spirit of this collection is as much rooted into the petulant lo-fi of 90’s alt icons like Pavement and Guided by Voices, and the psych-pop-metal of Pixies.

Photonic’s songs veer between half-complete ADHD experiments and fully formed post-rock mini-epics. Vocals sprinkle this album almost at random, and styles change mid-song. On the first couple of listens (and I’d listened to most of these tracks on the band’s Myspace, like, 5 times, before buying the album) you really don’t know what’s coming next.

The production is stripped back to the point of being resolutely lo-fi, which constitutes a sizeable chunk of this album’s charm. It’s difficult to tell whether this sound is intentional or the result of having too little wonga to afford a decent recording. However, let’s keep our man Craig away from Pro-tools lest he be tempted – the production here is just perfect as it is.

Photonic are another one of those bands that mix a bunch of my favourite styles in magical ways, but what an unexpected mix this is. It’s impossible to know where to place this within the modern skewed-spectrum of *cores. Craig describes Photonic as “a rock metal power-chord psychedelic beats party” and appears unable or unwilling to classify the band himself – indeed there is no-one else out there is recording music like this, at least to my knowledge. Given this, anyone who signs Photonic will be gambling on a band that damn near impossible to market. This is the travesty of the music industry, where conformity is rewarded and individuality is ignored.

Shit, someone better sign Photonic, otherwise I’ll start a record label and I’ll do it myself!

In the meantime, I implore you, give Photonic some of your money and time (check out most of the album on their myspace here). This seedling needs watering, as the world will be a duller place without it.

You have to wonder whether the title of this much anticipated comeback EP is a reference to the backwards leaning tendencies contained herein. Like a little smorgasbord, these 4 tasty tid-bits are both familiar but also fresh.

Cayman’s Tongue lurches into the post-hardcore territory of Perfect Pitch Black while also referencing the space rock majesty of Jupiter. We then take a complete left turn into the pounding Retina See Rewind – a forceful yet melodic punk frenzy.

The Red Trail is pure ferocious hardcore of a kind becoming less common if these days of monotonous Deathcore and pretentious crabcore. This is new ground for the ephemeral Cave In, and is a style that suits them well, but we’re used to them pushing boundaries, which aren’t being pressured much here.

Finally Air Escapes is has a robotic pummel reminiscent of Queens of the Stone Age and provides the most melodic moment of the quartet.

What’s missing here are the yearning melodies of Cave In’s middle period. The is progression here but overall this seems like a band finding their feet again, and consequently doesn’t stand up against their best. Cave In need to decide who they’re going to be next; as a transition work this is an entertaining bask in former glories, but a glorious comeback it ain’t.

The EP is currently streaming in its entirety here.

(3.5)

A track by track breakdown of British post-[hardcore|metal|rock] act Fall of Efrafa’s third full length album would simply read ‘epic’ 7 times. The majority of tracks on this vegan opus clock in at between 10 and 17 minutes. This is the final instalment of Fall of Efrafa’s 3 albums that  re-imagine the story and themes of Watership Down in a quasi-political polemic – an effort that makes Coheed and Cambria’s Star Wars wet dream seem half hearted.

Inlé takes it time. There’s little room for subtlety here, but there are moments of wistful beauty interspersed with bludgeoning hardcore which elicits The Ocean and Neurosis. The vocals are a monotonous roar which occasionally breaks down to a Frank Carter-esque rasp while the guitars cast a doomy air across these rhythmically sparse soundscapes. Highlights are the doom-core of Wonderwort and the final track  The Warren of Snares which wraps up this series in spectacular style surging and and waining before culminating into a pummeling finalé.

Fall of Efrafa should perhaps be congratulated for being the only band in history to base their entire career on rabbits and their dedication is commendable. However, Inlé is perhaps too ponderous  for it’s own good – Efrafa may be labouring a point here, and they’re certainly labouring the music. I’ve no doubt that this album will blossom it’s purposeful beauty after repeated listens, but time is precious, and you have to wonder whether Efrafa are in any hurry to spread their message.

I’ve not heard the rest of their back catalogue so I can’t say whether this is a fitting end to the saga, however, it’s a diverting listen which is heartfelt and passionate. It can be downloaded in its entirity (as well as their other releases) here.

(3.5)