Interesting name, interesting band. Hailing from the south-east of England, Feed The Rhino sound a little like The Used and Every Time I Die got together after a drunken evening and Feed The Rhino was the ensuing lovechild that surprised them both.

Surprising in a number of ways. They have a fairly unique low, but not low-fi, post-hardcore, stoner-rock influenced sound with a surprising amount of variety and range. “The Butchers” kicks things off in a haze of military style drumming and feedback before launching headlong into a reverberating riff structure which bends conventional notions of time signatures in it’s bridges and has an almost jazz-funk feel to it, if you were to strip away the layers of distortion. This is ably complimented by Lee’s scorching vocals, which sets the tone for things to come.

Followed swiftly on by “The Caller Of The Town”, which I defy you not to tap your foot to the main opening riff of, this album manages to walk the razor’s edge between consistency and variety. No two songs sound the same, but key elements pull it all together stylistically — the vocals, which make me want to scream along; the drumming, which makes me tap along and the delicious hooks of the inventive guitar riffs, which makes me wish I could play guitar better.

Being managed by the bassist from Gallows must have put them in good stead, as they are already making quite a name for themselves in the mere nine months they’ve been going. That said, it can be difficult to crawl out from another band’s shadow, but these Kentsters do it easily and admirably. Their success is due to their own creativity and invention, there’s no doubt, but having contacts never hurts.

Production on the album is excellent. As with a lot of guitar-based bands a lot of emphasis is given to the guitars, but Lee’s vocals are always crisp, the drums plug away without overpowering and you can even hear the bass, which is often a rarity.

This album will definitely make my playlist and their variety means they could happily sit alongside bands as different as Refused, Glassjaw, Helmet, Alexisonfire and Queens of the Stone Age and not only fit in but actually help to pull the playlist together cohesively.

It’s difficult to pick out favorite tracks, but “Transistor Down”, “Empty Mirrors” and “Sitting Ducks” all deserve a mention for being good examples of what the band can do. This is altogether a solid and powerful release which sets a high standard for future work, Mr Red Eye demands your attention and he doesn’t take no for an answer.

4.0/5