Reviewed by Christian Cunningham

Imagine veteran post-hardcore band Project 86, with their quirky punk infused sound, melded with the raucous rock 'n' roll sensibilities of The Hives and you have something approaching the aural signature of Silence The Foe. It's all spiky, angular, jagged riffing and it's tremendously entertaining (at first), careering along on grooves held together by loose string with the feeling it might at any moment fall apart. The musicality and potential of Silence The Foe is clear and the opening trio of tracks blast out of the speakers with marvelous energy. However, by the end of the album it's all rather gone awry. An almost throw-away instrumental track at number four in the listing manages to derail the runaway mine train that had built up so much impetus initially, and then the album never quite recovers. Some interesting soundscapes emerge on tracks such as "Perplex In A Labyrinth" and "Freakin' Nightmare", but most of what follows is a little forgettable, including another instrumental that adds nothing to the album. It's a shame, since there is much promised.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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