Rollor - Cod Philosophy (EP)

Iminaquik Records

February 20, 2009, 02:03 PM

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First things third! Just who in the name of sweet Kermit 'the Frickin' Frog are Rollor [did I hear you cry that]? Well, fuck all that background information bollocks. It takes forever and I seriously can't be arsed! All I will tell is this - Rollor make a racket, a big, loud, in-your-face, going to befriend your sister, take her home and have my way with her racket - Oh and they are from Glasgow! Sum it up nicely for you? Good!

'Cod Philosophy' takes the sawn off cuts of Sonic Youth, Shellac, and at times Pixies [when they were hell-bent on noise (think 'Dead' or half of 'Bossanova')] and melds them with utterly bizarre lyrics and titles that clearly have some sort of intergalactic, little green man vibe about them. I mean [seriously] can anyone explain 'Energies Are Dead In The Mind Constilation' to me? Just utterly mind-bending. Opening with the title track that takes 10 seconds of chaotic bluster to settle into it's on/off lunging riff, before the distorted vocals channel in the spirit of possibly L.Ron Hubbard. Settling down a little [you'd think], you're almost at ease thinking "we are winding down" when in fact Rollor are merely winding up intricately, weaving in guitar stabs, building up for one final push at roughing us up.

'Different Paths Of Thought' comes in almost off-centre, off-key, not quite ready to be unleashed but that's no doubt the aimed effect. Again, the vocals are buried but this time free of the distortion and if you listen carefully, much clearer. I must confess though that I've still got no idea what it's all about! The track itself is much more straightforward but bursts into a deliriously charged riff before sending us on our way. 'Energies Are Dead..." is a title aimed at confusion and it delivers. It's like a less polished, less frenzied "God Speed You Black Emperor". It doesn't try to get above it's station and settles nicely into an almost punk/lounge mode whilst still retaining the brittle sound that seems to encompass Rollor before delivering yet another sonic explosion.


'What We Found In The Fire Escape' is much more tuneful. Trying to rein in the chaos [as best they can] and delivering the clearest vocal thus far. It's clearly quite venomous "Can't smell the venom seeping through the ceiling"... literally. More of a verse/chorus number it's much easier to digest until the experimentalism cuts in and it sonically assaults the ears drums like Schwarzenegger in Commando [I just watched that last night, it's fresh in the mind - "Let off some steam Bennett"]. 'Second Law' lulls you in for about 5 seconds with nicety and chocolate before whipping off the mask and laughing maniacally as bass and guitars are wrapped around your senses and pitchforks are stabbed in your arse.

Finishing off with 'Stapped' that seemingly starts like a pumped up 'Purple Haze' before settling into less a purple haze and more a haze of ferocity. Quite charming really, and somewhat tuneful. Rollor are not your big-time band. They don't want to be. The production is down and dirty [whilst this will annoy some purists] and it suits their music [if you polish it up you fuck it up so, hands-off!]. There is nothing decidedly different about Rollor other than the fact that they don't strive to conform or fit a genre they just make as much noise as possible for 3 fellas from Glasgow and, as I can attest it's a truly great, almighty big noise.

Tracklisting:
1. Cod Philosophy (5:02)
2. Different Paths Of Though (3:34)
3. Energies Are Dead In The Mind Constilation (3:10)
4. What We Found In The Fire Escape (4:14)
5. Second Law (3:26)
6. Stapped (3:32)

Buy Now via Rollor on MySpace Music

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