Welcome back to the asylum, in the first issue of Saggy Pants magazine I reviewed a band whose first demo 'Fear On All Fours' made me stand up, dance around the room and grin from cheek to cheek. Now nearly 6 months later I have Grain's new (and soon to be extented, i believe) E.P and as my speakers start to thump to the weird and unpredictable style of Grain's self made funk, folk, hip-hop, country rock, I once more slip into a land of beauty and madness. The first track is a re-worked version of 'Easy' and with a slower jam feel and the added shakers and percussion, it is more powerful and driven than on the older recordings. Lead vocalist Ben has a really strong, dirty and powerfully individual voice, mixing a rock n roll style with a crazy and dynamic System of a down style of growls and emotional outbursts. With the guitars slipping from funky holding riffs to well thought out solos and the bass and drums driving the music with clever and dynamic changes, it is both catchy, yet different. Tracks 2 and 3 are both very interesting and show a more hoe down side to Grain's music, which is certainly a better representation of their live sound. 'Feline, Bottle-neck, Mouseshoe Trap' certainly has a bouncing riff that carries the song and with its cool guitar break downs and catchy vocal patterns, it mixes some great funk influences with a more fun country feel, and it means (in the words of frontman Ben) "anything you want it to" 'Gone Fishin' also shows how fun Grain are with its cheesy riff that gets build into an epic hoe down track. After their last offering I thought Grain would do well to experiment with the harmonica and dynamic of the songs more and they have certainly done this. The drumming is very varied and works brilliantly with the percussion, with the bass staying strong and stable and the guitars and vocals mixing their patterns and styles, They're are getting better and better. Another great and fun insight into the wonderful world of Grain.
Review by Gaz
