Aieris - Sophomore CD

Man today was a hard day. Uni early and then off to get some work done. Hey KJ, there is a parcel in the pigeon hole for you man. Do not ask who it was cos I dunno. Curiously I walked over to the department pigeon holes to collect my mail. Wondering what it was, I quickly searched through and came across a package addressed to me.

Yo, Cunny, check this out!. We had received our first demo CD; Aieris Sophomore EP, waiting to be reviewed. I aint ever been so hyped in Uni before, and desperately hoped our first review would be a positive one. There went my next lecture and the rest of the Uni day for me, and off in the car I went, and now, hear I am, sitting in my broom cupboard, listening to Sophomore by Aieris.

The kind of mood I am in right now, the last thing I need is booming bass lines and thundering riffs, kindling the raging fire that is my mind. But what is this? Greeted by a slow and mellow introduction to the EP, Better Still, I happily let the CD spin in the drive. In comes Andy Dorrat with the vocals. This is exactly what I need right now, smooth vocals and equally smooth music. So now I am chilling with Better Still playing in the background, amazed at the instant effect the EP has on me.

Now this aint my first choice in music style, usually in a situation like this I would probably throw in some Hip Hop, but the very fact that the EP is still spinning is a good sign, a very good sign indeed, and with Baz and Cunny still to review the EP, this can only be a good thing. The CD switches seamlessly from track to track. Next up, Blind. Usually, and all too often, a lot of bands, in my opinion talk about, well shit basically. But Aieris make a welcome and much needed change to this.

With carefully thought out lyrics and emotionally tying music, you cannot help but feel the Will and emotion that has gone into making this track, and the same thought applies to the other 3 on this EP. Track 3 of this 4 track EP opens up with a chilled and relaxed Andy, accompanied by the, well quite frankly, enchanting Alan Bell on the guitar. I never thought I would ever use the word, but it is true, One of these Days is definitely that, enchanting. This is my favourite track on the EP, for sure. Drawing me into the track, and the story behind it. The dream of finding that some one, one of these days, a tale that many of us can relate too. A positive outlook when things seem to be going bad, not just relationship wise, but for me, it felt like life in general. Waiting for that good thing to come along make everything alright, one of these days.

Feeling better, I wait in anticipation for the 15 second delay between tracks 3 and 4 to pass. Still in a daze from One of these Days I am immediately awoken when Static kicked in. Damn, just when you thought it was going to be one of those CDs you can just sit with a lady and relax to, in comes the massive riffs I was talking about. But hey, it is not bad. Not at all actually. A perfectly timed track to bring you out of the dream that the previous 3 tracks put you in. Im a put that track on a mini-disc for sure. Overall, this is a very good EP. Showing off their talent in the recording studio, I await the opportunity to see the guys live on the 15th of November 2001 at the Doghouse. If we did a rating system, and I would be using P for Phat, I would give this a wicked 8 out of 10. A definite recommendation.