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Ghost Robot Ninja Bear

Ghost Robot Ninja Bear EP

Written by: PP on 27/10/2010 02:30:57

I wonder if the guys from Ghost Robot Ninja Bear collectively sat down together and decided to list four awesome entities on a piece of paper, and use them in sequence to form their band name. It seems to be the most plausible reason anyway. This tiny musical outfit originates from Brooklyn, New York, rising from the ashes of Nakatomi Plaza as the new project by said band's ex-vocalist Oscar Albis Rodriguez. Some might call the line-up star-studded considering it also features members of Gracer and Ludlow Lions, but I'll just go ahead and say it's a promising union of musicians, and given how "Ghost Robot Ninja Bear EP" is essentially their debut to the world, I'd say some very good things are in store for them across the pond.

The premise is simple enough to describe. Two bands that have been of utmost importance for the guys in this band are clearly Small Brown Bike and Hot Water Music, though these guys are influenced more by the cleaner, more punk rock oriented sound of latter's "Caution" era and thereafter, rather than the raspier, hardcore-infused of their early albums. Hence, the SBB sound is also dominant in the mix. So you can expect scracthy clean vocals sung passionately and awesome vocal harmonies working hand-in-hand with melodic guitar dynamics. Essentially, the very definition of anthemic punk rock if you ask me.

The sound is characterized by a well-produced soundscape that features a wide and fearlessly played clean guitar sound, and a boatload of catchy melody injections in the form of melodic croons to keep things interesting. Have a listen to the great melody within "Blood The Tango" to see just what I mean. There's even some screamo thrown into various places of "Carousel" as if to draw in the non punk rock fans.

Now, if it wasn't for the vast majority of you getting all confused about the terminology here, I'd call Ghost Robot Ninja Bear's music post-hardcore the way it was intended to be played back in the old days. But since nowadays the term that was coined by bands like Jawbreaker and indeed Hot Water Music implies more about scene membership and high-flying tapped guitars than actual post-hardcore, I'll just stick with saying they play punk rock in the vein of later Hot Water Music albums, and they do it rather well without making a 'wow' impression. Yet.

Download: Blood The Tango
For the fans of: Hot Water Music, Small Brown Bike
Listen: Myspace

Release date 15.06.2010
Self-Released