One of the leading bands in the underground of British Rock, Stoke’s Quiet The Thief have long been a band where you think: “man, if only”.
They’ve got all the talent – crikey just listen to the lead guitar break on opening song “Star Crossed Lovers” here – and they’ve got all the tunes. With a little more luck, or if their lives were different maybe, who knows what could be achieved.
This five tracker essentially picks up where their previous full-length album, “Silent Screams” left off a couple of years ago. And “The Fate Of Elision” (apparently it means “the process of joining together or merging things, especially abstract ideas.” No, I didn’t know that either….) is just as classy.
But the thing about QTT is that for all their class, they have a dirty, biker groove thing going on. Those of us that loved The Almighty have always, surely, been able to identify something of Ricky Warwick’s DNA in their tunes – this one is no different.
Opener – and arguably best thing here – “Star Crossed Lover” ushers itself in on a big, thick riff, something a little similar to Corrosion Of Conformity, perhaps, and this is a confident, catchy beginning. One that is ready – in truth for a fight too, by the breakdown, Stig, their singer, is happily offering anyone out for a scrap that he can find, by the sounds of it.
“Open Road” changes the vibe. Widescreen, and with a pleasing, mid-paced hook, if radio was going to pick one of these up, then its this one.
It might be worth at this point thinking back to the title of the EP. That word you didn’t know the meaning of, right? “Abstract ideas”. Well QTT are making good on that. “Free Fall” has a real metal tinge, and some mighty, thunderous bass carries it.
“Unwritten” likewise, has an ominous side. And if its not fully “grunge” as it were, then it sits somewhere between Sabbath and Nirvana.
An example of the way they want to do things in their own way, is “Speed Freak”. When I looked at the tracklist and saw that one last, I assumed a Motorhead cover. Lemmy and the chaps, after all, are ripe for that from a band like this, but its not. Instead it is rooted in the classic bands, it knows its way around some filthy sounding rock n roll, but it’s done with an original twist and very much their own stamp.
And I’d argue that sums up not just this song, not even just this EP, but the band too.
Rating 8/10
