Fallow Man EP

Featured Article

Fallow Man EP

Review

Once again, I am in the happy position to write about a band who have hitherto yet to appear in "Hot Music Live". Fallow Man  comprise Greg Brice who plays lead guitar & provides backing vocals, lead vocalist & rhythm guitarist James Drinkwater, drummer Jon Bryan  and bass player Chris Simmonds. Many (most?) bands tend to form around musicians with shared interests & used to playing in a similar style: and that naturally works really well. A few others, and Shanghai Hostage spring to mind of current local artists (though they sound nothing like Fallow Man: which is a validation of the approach), collect around eclectic tastes & styles, with shared values but bringing a wonderful creative smorgasbord to the table. So it is with this band who come from a variety of backgrounds & produce a multi genre (or no genre) sound. Dubbed "indie rock" on promotional material (and it's amazing how many broad definitions exist in publicity, to the point where meaning is diluted in favour of a vague signpost, though I understand the necessity to try to describe a band playing at your venue as something potential audiences might feel comfortable with).

And so we arrive at their debut & eponymous EP, which consists of three tracks, namely "Tonight Matthew", "She Just Wants To Be Loved" and "Forest For The Trees" and which can be accessed at https://soundcloud.com/fallowmanband.

"Tonight Matthew" pretty much encapsulates their general approach: starting in a gentle blues-influenced way, it relaxes into a gentler rock style (though the drums & guitars are surprisingly spiky for such an approach) and like the other two tracks on the EP, settles into a groove rather than the rather ubiquitous post-Nirvana template of violently juxtaposed sections of varying volumes. Again like the other songs, it is clear that a major focus for the band is the lyrical content (they cite Billy Bragg among their influences) and the words are the heart of the track: thoughtful & well crafted. This song is now also a single in its own right & can be acquired via the usual platforms.

EP opener "She Just Wants To Be Loved" is a good dynamic choice for its slot: the catchiest and most pop orientated song on the record. I hope it gets radio play as it is very friendly to that medium & again deploys wit & memorability in ways which stir memories of many a treasured single from the poppier end of punk, post-punk and Britpop without being a pastiche of any particular band.

 

"Forest For The Trees', which closes this collection offers a third aspect of their talents (the EP as a whole is a neat showcase), being more at the angsty end of their spectrum, both lyrically & musically, being a pretty existential look at aspects of our journey through life with a generous use of the metaphors of nature.

With such variety at their disposal, devising setlists must be interesting & I look forwards to catching them live for a full set & sampling their full repertoire. You can catch them on March 27th (COVID 19 permitting) with the Duck Thieves at Coventry's Empire

  Web      Social media   

  Share

Related articles

There is not a huge lot I can offer in reviewing terms regarding Stylusboy's new release of an acoustic version of "Fourteen Days" since I wrote ...

 [1 image]

As I've said before, I'm obliged that Duck Thieves provide their own self description for the aid of potential audience members & reviewers: while ...

 [2 images]

I'm really pleased to be reporting on the latest single from Rheo Uno: "Dead and Done".

 [2 images]

Keeping tabs on the output of Daffod'i'll is frankly one of keeping score of album releases.

 [1 image]

It's very exciting to be able to share 'Hot Music Live Presents Volume Twelve' with you: eleven more examples of how diverse & original the music ...

 [2 images]

VolumeĀ 12 (opens in BandCamp)

This collection is the twelfth in a series celebrating the inspiring & diverse talent of Coventry & ...

 [1 image]

I have to confess that reviewing releases by John Connearn are among the most challenging for me.

 [1 image]

By now, I think many of us think we have a handle on the shape of an Eyes of Isabel release: Tony Ally conceives it, then he takes it to John ...

 [1 image]