The Blackout - Hard Slammin' [Single]

August 10, 2006, 11:02 AM

It's always exciting for me to get a CD from a Welsh band in the mail. But not this time! The ****ing Blackout? Who signed them? Turns out that it's Fierce Panda. Dumb asses.

The Blackout are one of those bands that screams not because they are feeling really emotional about the subject, but because people think it's cool and makes a song sound better. Obviously produced by Romesh Dodangoda (due to the "power snare" that he always uses being present). Now don't get me wrong Romesh is a good producer HOWEVER, he always mixes bands the same way and gives them the same drum sound which unfortunately makes it hard to distinguish between the Welsh bands that he records (The Story So Far, Kids in Glass Houses, The Citadel, Dopamine etc).

The A Side "Hard Slammin'" actally suprises me when it starts off and I'm thinking that maybe the Blackout have changed? Nope. The chorus is quite catchy, however overall I can't get into the song as they aren't really singing about anything. They have just put together a bunch of words, then contructed the catchiest melody they are capable of and at certain points put screaming in so that they conform to the "formula" that Fierce Panda have obviously bought into.. This "formula" will fool many of the Welsh so called "Scene" kids which is quite obvious by the comments on their Myspace page:

One of the best songs ever?? I feel really bad for that kid. Theres plenty more comments of a similar vain too.

I like bands that are singing about something important. Politics, religion, war, life etc. I like a lyricist that is a poeticly talented but, like many of the current late teens, early twenties, Welsh, so called Hardcore bands "The Blackout" aren't talking about anything and think that constructing a song with all the right things in all the right places will work. It might for many teenage girls but it won't work with serious music fans. This will never appeal to serious music fans and The Blackout must know this??

The Blackout is a true case of it's who you know. Sean is well connected with a few people and has always used that to help out his band. The Blackout have toured with The Lost Prophets, were on Give It a Name and all sorts of other high profile gigs. I'll battle with anyone that all of those slots were because of knowing someone not because the concert promoter said "You guys are amazing, come and play this gig!"

The B Side of this single is pure shit. Some slow acoustic number where it appears that The Blackout want to be The Lost Prophets. Not the good parts of The Lost Prophets but the "we've sold out" slow repetitive crap that they have been doing lately. The "screamer" sings on this and it hankers back to a little bit of how Alex sounded in the When Reason Sleeps days (copying????).

Anyway I have to end this review right now because if I have to listen to these two songs again I think I might kill myself. Oh well, at least I have a new coaster! Or maybe if it gets sunny later I'll invite my friends over for a game of frisbee. Either way this will not be gracing my CD player EVER again. Apparently this is a Fierce Panda "Limited Edition" CD single. I hope for eveyone's sake that it is limited to one copy and I was the unfortunate soul that had to receive it.

If you're looking to listen to some really stupid, mediocre, 3 years old "screamo" music then check out The Blackout now at www.myspace.com/theblackout