Shadows Chasing Ghosts

Never Get a Wolf's Attention By Pulling Its Tail EP

Written by: TL on 21/01/2009 16:22:41

It's not exactly a secret that the UK is being significantly slower at digesting the whole emo trend than the United States have been, and thus it's also no surprise that it continues to be the spawning ground for a band like Shadows Chasing Ghosts, who on their debut "Never Get a Wolf's Attention By Pulling Its Tail EP" sound so 2004 that I can't even begin to describe it for you - And what a horrible name for an EP by the way. Anyway, just think of the good old stuff by Story Of The Year and Halifax and it will be like you're right there on their myspace, listening to their music with me.

If those bands don't mean squat to you though, rest assured that this one is as emocore as they come, and shamelessly so, citing all too worn out influences like UnderOath, Saosin and Finch. They sound more like the two other bands I mentioned though, and perhaps even more so like the Welsh boys in The Blackout. It's pretty much the same melodic and chorded post-hardcore riffage, the same angst-filled vocals and the same generi-core screams/growls trading words between each other. In fact, all that's missing is the attitude in delivery and lyrics and they would've been an exact copy of that (awesome) band. Not that that's enough to gain a positive review though.

Their problem as well, is the same as with many debuting bands of this genre. They have their sound and their production values down but lack the experience when it comes to writing songs that stick, and as such, the first four tracks fly by on a fast beat, enjoyable and energetic but also largely forgetable. Only track 2; "(Blueprints For) Our Worst Laid Plans" manage to really grab your attention, and when it comes as an effect of a blatant overuse of its catch-phrase "I am your design!" I'm not exclusively positive about it. "Needle" is the obligatory 'slow song' of the record and after four consecutive ones that bounced away at punk rock speeds, it easily stands out with it's increased focus on, and quality of, clean vocals. "Vespasian" sports a riff to remember and a 1:30 attempt to prove that SCG can be as heavy as the heavier of their influences, and doesn't fail entirely, and in the end the EP sounds off with "Girls In Sheep's Clothing", which seems to be taken over by hardcore much like Story Of The Year's later material has been.

Now I think I can sum things up really quickly for this band; I'm not going to slack them off totally, simply because I totally understand their passion for all those neo-classical emocore bands. I'm not going to over-grade them either though, because these boys still need to find some way of sounding more like themselves than like their idols before they can hope to make any lasting impression at all. Till then, listen to this EP if you eat bands like this like candy anyway, otherwise, wait around till the dudes get some more hair on their chests.

Download: (Blueprints For) Our Worst Laid Plans, Needle, Vespasian
For The Fans Of: The Blackout, Story of The Year, Halifax, Behind Crimson Eyes
Listen: myspace.com/shadowschasingghosts

Release Date Spring 2008
**UNSIGNED BAND**

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