Kane Fulton

Afterglows demo CD kicks off with 'Promises', a rousing, lively effort with a catchy chorus. It's not a bad song by any means, there's a nice, bluesy guitar solo midway through, and some killer drums riffs toward the end, but it didn't reach out and grab me like tracks two and three did.

Track two, 'Indie Afterglow' is fantastic. It starts off with a funky indie-disco bassline that sounds somewhere in between Scissor Sisters 'Filthy/Gorgeous' and Red Hot Chili Peppers 'Out of Time'. Listening to this CD I couldn't help but feel it could've done with better production. Obviously, this band of young lads won't be able to afford to hire Maida Vaile, and I can't wait to hear these lads live to get a true reflection of their sound. It's just that sometimes you feel like you're listening to the songs whilst underwater, or trapped in a bubble. Actually, I think the real reason for this is that I need my ears waxing.

The third track is another great tune called 'Echoes'. The track opens with a gorgeous acoustic guitar chord sequence which, when the bass kicked in, reminded me of Green Days, 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams'. The band clearly have talent, especially in the lead guitar player, who pulls out a great melodic solo towards the end.

Afterglow sound like a band trying to find their sound, so they've recorded three songs with three different styles. That said, the diversity is good, and kept me interested. Sometimes parts of the songs worked, and sometimes they didn't. I for one think Afterglow have real potential to develop into a great band who aren't afraid of testing the water, and I'm going to be keeping my eye on them in the future. You should be doing the same.

Rating:

8/10

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