Gothic time travellers Partly Faithful return with the follow-up to their eponymous debut EP released earlier this year, with a slightly shuffled line-up but the same obsession with the dark arts of post-punk and new-wave. The London quartet are still hauling in the sounds of Bauhaus and Sisters Of Mercy, and black clothes, eyeliner and back-combed hair. The difference being that on new record 'The Beehive' they've developed a bit more grunt; edging away from the spidery guitar lines and Cure-indebted indie crossover sound in favour of upping the rock aspect to their music. The songs and the idea haven't changed drastically, but the production has, covering any traces of tinny distortion with a deeper and sturdier dynamic. It's clear from the opening gambit of 'Needles' that they're here to do business and catch attentions a little more forcefully this time. The bass is straight from an Echo & The Bunnymen record, the drums are full of thunder and the vocals snarl just a touch more than before.
There is a hint of the previous scuzzier sound to be heard on 'The Worm Within', again the rhythm section provides the brute force, the vocals keep you alert, but the guitars are allowed to wander more, from far back in the mix to upfront and from crisp to a blur of distortion and feedback that gets ever more urgent as the song develops. On 'So Happy' they venture deeper into gothic realms, there's even a hint of early Black Sabbath about the verses, although minus the hard-rock riffing; here there's more piercing distortion instead which prevents a deviation into the world of metal. Fifteen second curio 'Pause For Applause' is simply silence, maybe it's a remix of John Cage's '4'.33"'. Finally we get the title-track, possibly the best here and certainly the most likely to catch the ears of those not well versed in this corner of the guitar world. It's essentially an amalgamation of the EPs best bits (minus the silence). Partly Faithful will be only looking at a niche market for what they do and their refusal to commercialise their music should be applauded, plus it's always great to hear bands progressing like this.
Partly Faithful's website
Buy the EP
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