"Days Ago": the debut single by StereoTypical

I make absolutely no apologies for my regular articles praising the young artists emerging locally through the "Live On Stage" project organised by The Tin & Coventry Music. Not only do these musicians help to ensure the sustainability of the whole current vibrant scene but in their own right so many of them are among the most talented & original our area has experienced ever: and that's not hyperbole as so many people agree and this is also in the context of all of them still being right at the very beginning of what I hope will be long careers.

To help spread the word, I have tried to focus as many as possible at our ‘Hot Music Live Presents' fundraisers at & for The Tin and of course to review their releases once they get into the studio. In most cases, the first has been easier than the second.

Consequently, though I've had the chance to feature & praise  StereoTypical for their live work, it's only today with the release of their debut single "Days Ago" (the first taste of what will in time be an EP) that I have had the pleasure of talking about them on record.

This will knock your socks off. The wait has been worth it. It's not that StereoTypical haven't had the songs nor opportunities to record: they have many qualities as you'll see me cite in a moment, but getting the debut right has been a matter of grave concern and they wanted to nail perfect versions & not fudge their music. (There have also been a few lineup tweaks in the meantime).

In the end, they have worked at Woodbine Street Studio with John Rivers to achieve perfection & in a moment of strange serendipity, I was actually standing with John when he first caught them live & witnessed his immediate enthusiasm & desire to work with them. With more than fifty years of experience, he's not lightly impressed.

A consistent theme running through my reviews is to foreground attitudinal values that impress me: originality, honesty, etc as I think that technical proficiency is not an end in itself. There seems little point in developing virtuosity if you then use material to showcase it rather than to serve inspirational songs.

I do readily acknowledge that proficiency underpins the "Live On Stage" artists: it provides them with the tools to soar creatively  and none more so than StereoTypical: having watched them in the company of several experienced musicians, it's not possible to comment on their performances without recourse to mentioning their skills.

Nonetheless: these abilities serve well thought out and original songs which display flair & commitment to a unique identity. I have heard the entire EP and every track might plausibly have been the first single. Some may of course follow in that role.

Thanks to the above mentioned skills, although the band offer us "post hardcore, grungy music" as a signpost, there are people who detect prog in the mix & I get it. you can pick all these strands out of "Days Ago" if you like though obviously many people (especially those not writing reviews) prefer not to pick tracks apart nor try to compare them with other stuff by other people.

It's got an anthemic quality (the band are good at "big" songs) which is going to be helpful in setting their career stall out & what I particularly like about the production is how John & the band have brought out the melodic aspects and the actual words. Live, StereoTypical create a wonderful overall impression with elements melded together, but I do think that however they've managed to allow access to these elements without losing the overall character of the song is to everyone's credit: I imagine this is what they've been aiming for during the period of trying to get their recordings absolutely right.

They already have an excellent reputation based on live work & now they have their first artefact to help spread the word out further than their immediate live audiences.

The music business notoriously & frequently fails to reward positive attributes with a corresponding element of fortune but you really can't do more than StereoTypical have done so far: they deserve success and possess all they could reasonably be expected to have in order to do well. This is an important career milestone for them & one I'm delighted to record & share.