http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/whats-on/music-gigs-middlesbrough/2004/01/23/soundspin-84229-13849194/
oh dear oh dear.
Soundspin
Jan 23 2004
By Phil Weller, Evening Gazette
Exitbyname are on their mettle with a grand entrance
A
fortnight before they begin a 14-date UK tour, Stockton's Exitbyname
release their debut 11-track album, The Disillusion Is Real, on Monday.
Recorded
last March at Southern Studios in London, this is a mighty Molotov
cocktail of frustration and aggression, made more weighty by the
intensely tight budget and time scale involved.
Producer
Harvey Birrell, who has worked with Therapy, Miocene, Fugazi and Steve
Albini, guided them through their five day whistle-stop studio stay.
I
caught up with the band at Pig Pen rehearsal rooms near Trimdon, as
they put their finishing touches to their new tour van and listened to
The Disillusion Is Real.
* 1999
PW: The first song the band wrote together blows your speakers apart - making it clear that ExitByName mean business.
Frontman,
Phil Saunders: "I believe every song has to have a meaning, it's
incredibly hard to write a song about nothing. 1999 is the song
everyone always asks 'What's it about?', sadly I'm not giving this one
away. 'It's been this way since 1999'. What has? Not us. We've been
that way since 2000."
Ambulance
PW: Whether it's
influenced by Neighbours or relates to a childhood friend's accident,
it exudes desperation, dark and demanding, moulded around a chorus
that'll have you yelling along, questioning purpose.
PS: "The
only thing I'd really been into up to the point of writing lyrics for
these songs was girls and bands. So I guess every song on this record
is about one or the other."
Look Into Youself
PW:
Rarely played live, this pounding, powerful number ups the ante, down
tunes and explodes with vehemence as searing vocals rip across
unmistakable metal riffs.
EBN: "We've been likened to a lot of
DC hardcore bands - this track particularly. It's a scene that we don't
really listen to or know anything about so the likeness is purely
accidental!"
I Broke Into A Run
PW: EBN get
socio-political as brooding guitars give way to near-LostProphets hooks
and a critical look at the state of education.
PS: "This was
born out of a riff that was used in Dave's old band, Blacktop. The
lyrics are from a song that was a No School Reunion tune - one of my
old projects. It has two choruses, sung on top of each other. I
couldn't decide on a 'singy' one or a 'shouty' one, so did both!"
Keep My Distance
PW: This tune is smoothed with a poppier edge (although a distinct death-metal growl creeps into a chorus).
EBN:
"This is a favourite live tune for the band and is probably the most
melodic on the album. Many have campaigned for this to be a single
release, but there are no plans to release singles from the album."
Gave Him Voice
PW:
Slower in stride but packing a mighty punch, this track twists around
two chords as a visceral vocal attack unfolds. A bit of a favourite on
Total Rock radio, this one.
EBN: "It's a heavy, slow tune and we love playing this live too. The demo version featured Alter Ego singer Dave Briggs."
Class One
PW:
Another track written during their early days, this swirls with
distorted, fuzzy guitars before cracking back with driving riffs and
punishing lyrics.
EBN: "Often requested live, but not always
on the set. The 6/8 time signature that guides the riff highlights
Dave's love of the band Will Haven."
Hands Are Tied
PW:
Written while they were waiting to record the album, the guitars give
off more of a crunch but less ferocity and the vocals echo the band's
frustration.
EBN: "This song was written just before we went
into the studio, along with Can't Escape The Circles and Keep My
Distance. After signing the deal it took us so long to actually get
into the studio that we had time to write a song about it. Record deals
are a necessary evil. You can't get too far without one, but they suck
in too many ways."
Can't Escape The Circles
PW: Rekindling the corpulent riffs of yesteryear's sturdy metal, heads will bang to this huge, heavy song for sure.
EBN:
"We're often a tricky one to pigeonhole but the word 'metal' always
crops up. There's a definite metal thread that runs through all our
songs but especially so in this track."
Last
PW:
Rousing fan favourite steers the album to a driving climax. Gliding
easier than previous tracks, it would sit comfortably nearer the front
of the album. It may be the nearest to a ballad the band dare to go.
PS:
"I would like to point out that I have never claimed to be a 'singer',
I firmly believe I cannot 'sing' as such, and I'm really surprised that
the word 'melodic' has been said again and again by people who have
heard the album - which is nice."
Stunt Car
PW: ExitByName love spoonerisms and incredibly catchy hooks, clearly.
EBN:
"It's a joke that went too far, a two minute monster that took one
minute to write. It's about the dangers of pornography and warning
against the easily addictive lifestyle that it can suck you into."
The
album is released on Revolver records, the label who broke The Misfits
and Jane's Addiction in the UK, and will be available in most record
shops in the area from Monday.
You can catch ExitByName when
they return home briefly for official album launch show at the Georgian
Theatre on Saturday, February 7