Promising debut from Texan five piece
If you call your debut record “Everything Old Is New Again” you probably aren’t going to be too upset if the odd comparison to things from rock n roll’s past come your way.
Certainly Stella Lost seem to be inviting such things on this, their first EP. These seven tracks had MVM’s mind wandering back to the late 1990s when bands like Filter and Stabbing Westward were laying it all on the line.
There’s perhaps not the industrial overtones of those bands, but a listen to the second song here, “Commiseration” with its angular Tool-like riff and hints of desperation in the vocal delivery of singer Mike and those thoughts aren’t too far away.
Stella Lost know how to write a meaty riff to sucker you in too. The start of “Collateral” is surely designed to get a live gig jumping – indeed you can almost imagine it happening, and it’s far from the only one that has a brilliant intro. For example, the beginning of “Fear” is reminiscent of “The Hunter” era Mastodon as it swirls into view, and this one remains pretty incessant throughout, where some of its brethren do the loud-quiet-loud-quiet thing instead.
Admirably short, “……Again” isn’t here for a long time, but it’s certainly here for a good one, perhaps the pick is “Bad Trip”, which combines it’s sense of desolation with a superb chorus, while the closing “Mold The Lie” is arguably the heaviest here, and packs a real punch in this under two and a half minutes.
Stella Lost look to the past, but never become totally retro. In years gone by we’d have called this “Alternative”. Now it’ll probably be “post” something or other as everything gets fragmented and has to be classified.
How about this instead: “Everything Old Is New Again” is a very promising rock record from a band to keep an eye on. Easy isn’t it?
Rating 7/10
