Shield Your Eyes - Shield Em

There is something to be said for bands who put significant effort into making music that doesn’t follow the generic 4/4 verse-chorus-verse structure of rock. Even if the results aren’t always that great, they at least get points for trying something a bit different when so many others are content with a paint-by-numbers approach. Falling somewhere between the cracks of mathrock, progressive blues and post-hardcore, this London trio display their competence through rapid-fire interplay, off-kilter string bends and unpredictable rhythms that oftentimes teeter on the edge of collapse. The drums hold everything together nicely, even when the strained, whiney vocals threaten to overshadow the entire undertaking. Due to its monochromaticism and lukewarm delivery, this disc fundamentally feels like a demo, but there is definitely something going on. It might just take them a wee while longer to sort out the kinks and get down with the get down. [Eric Ledford]