The Fire and I – Double Kamikaze

Album Review by Ross Watson | 25 Mar 2014
Album title: Double Kamikaze
Artist: The Fire and I
Label: CarCrash Records
Release date: Out Now

Two-piece rock bands are something of a current trend, but The Fire and I's riff-charged marriage of crunchy leads and frighteningly precise drumming pays off in a way that's refreshingly minimal, almost like a rougher version of Ian MacKaye and Amy Farina's The Evens project. Stylistically, though, Gordon Love and Hooligan Sadikson's obsessions lie with early 2000s alternative rock.

 

The title track is satisfyingly raw, and Coming Loose is surprisingly emotive, sounding like a stripped back ode to 90s emo bands like Texas is the Reason and Sunny Day Real Estate, but they're not always this consistent; simpler attempts at straightforward hard rock are simply forgettable, like the uninspired Unlock My Sanity, or the dull, flat Bitten. The short interlude – a simple, glitchy beat – is awkward and unnecessary. It's occasionally fun and engaging, but despite a few clever quirks, there's little that sets Double Kamikaze apart from other, worthier riff-by-numbers LPs. Still, that's not to say you can't be won over by its sporadic charm. [Ross Watson]