For All Recorded Time – For All Recorded Time
For All Recorded Time – For All Recorded Time – Pre-Release Demo EP Review
Well shit! I didn’t know we had Tulare County’s best rock & roll on our hands today – but apparently we do in the world according to Facebook. I’ll put it this way…so far as I know, they ARE the uncontested champions…but I suppose I’ll also have to admit to not recollecting ever hearing music ever coming out of Tulare County before. It would be easy to stereotype these rockers…from pictures alone you can see long-hair, flying-V guitar held by lead vocalist/guitarist Shawn Duffey, sweat…like, visible SWEAT from a band that was rocking the fuck right out, ripped jeans…the assumption is one assuredly of rock.
But how MUCH rock may actually surprise you. There’s no doubt that when this three piece wants to light the place on fire, they’ll do it – just listen to the burning-opening in “Sacrifice.” A solid mix of which I wouldn’t change a thing all the way throughout the EP – this adventure begins in the hard-parts of the hearts & veins of For All Recorded Time; but what was truly impressive to me was just how much of a progression this EP makes within its five solid-tunes…there’s a real shift here that I can pretty much guarantee you won’t see coming after hearing “Sacrifice.” Don’t get me wrong…it’s a good song…but for my palette personally, I was looking for something a little less Sabbath-sounding…and just as I was wondering whether or not that would come my way on the other four-tunes…
…we’ve reviewed them in the past…and I checked into the social-media sites & main-site for the band…and something caught my eye…
If you look at their listed influences…you’ll see Sabbath…you’ll see Ozzy…you’ll see Alice In Chains…all artists/bands/sounds you’d expect to see listed after listening to the incredible guitars grind out the crunch in “Sacrifice” – but there was something else… Hidden slyly at the end of the list (okay…not so hidden, that was purely for dramatic-effect to shamelessly add to this anecdote) you’ll find both Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson. So I thought two things: First I thought WTF? And secondly, I thought…there has to be something a lot different than what I’m hearing here initially in “Sacrifice” to live on this record somewhere. Again…to state for the record, For All Recorded Time…I’m not complaining – just a hunch is all…
Though the switch doesn’t occur immediately…the potential for it begins to shine through the Frusciante-esque guitar-line that opens up “Blood On The Line.” Walking the line softly at the beginning…don’t let them fool you…all three of these guys carry a big damn stick and it’s not too long before they reach out again to beat you with it! The guitar-thrash and squelching notes are absolutely something my ears love to hear; it sounds reckless, free…and in complete control. I feel like Shawn could light this sound up note-for-note any time the opportunity presents itself. The solo around the three-thirty mark in “Blood On The Line” sets the strings on fire – his tone, his style…more than anything else I thought the guitars really get the credit for making this second-track work so damn well. Much credit as well to Ian Yale for the impressive drums that roll-along throughout “Blood On The Line” – Yale’s doing a lot more than simply keeping the beat; the writing is exciting, the playing is too.
I’ll let you in on a fun detail…we’ve already arranged an interview with For All Recorded Time to discuss some of what’s happening here on their new EP. Will I be asking about “Autotune?” HELLS YES I will. It’ll be interesting to re-debate the “Autotune” state of the world – I get what they’re saying about it, I’ve heard the arguments in general…and I also understand the benefits…and of course the ultimate reality that…with or without its robotic-like nature, it’s used almost 95% of the time out there. So prep for battle boys – I’m ready to play the devil’s advocate on that one! All this being said…what did seem somewhat surprising about “Autotune” to me was that this was being brought up NOW. I’m not quite certain as to exactly how long it takes the mainstream to drift into Tulare County…but I was positive this debate was settled roughly 5-6 years ago…but clearly the “Autotune” help that many artists lean on the effect for is still chapping this genuine-rock organic three-piece right in the asses. Because make no mistake – during the third song…and how aggressive “Autotune” really IS – I was starting to doubt myself about my intuition telling me that seeing Willie & Waylon might lead to something a little on the lighter-side. “Autotune” is as rough and tough as anything KMFDM ever put out…its lyrics, hooks & intent are all sharp and pointed-directly.
As of the 4th track, “Drowned” – I’d like to officially declare myself not insane. The pleasant-vibe to this rock is insatiably-catchy…it wasn’t even twenty-five seconds before I was nodding my head in agreement with my own damn self, thinking, ‘yep – this is a hit, 100%.’ AND…wouldn’t you know it – but this is the mark of that slight switch & variation in the music of For All Recorded Time as they pull-in pop tendencies and really meaty hooks into “Drowned.” And I sure as hell like that even though this song is only three-minutes-plus-barely long – this band doesn’t give up on the importance of musicianship and instrumentation despite this structure being more accessible – there’s one hell of a guitar-solo packed into this one. In our modern-day state of music, for me, seeing music that sits around the three-minute mark in length is almost a surefire sign of verse/chorus/verse and nothing more. No time for innovation – we got ADS to play, right radio-stations? Get to the parts we can sing along to!
Thankfully For All Recorded Time said a big ol’ F.U. to the restraints of modern-day convention – and what they’ve done in “Drowned” could serve as the freakin blueprint on how to entertain, pack in HUGE hooks and NOT have to sacrifice integrity and musicianship along the way to making a hit. “Drowned” is a big deal…the rhythm section pounds the drums out while David Wendt keeps the bass-notes thundering along and the vocals sound right ‘in the pocket.’ Duffey is a rocker at heart – there’s no doubt in my mind about it – but this particular tune reveals the potential for the band to head in all kinds of directions in the future; and in my opinion, the terrain they explore and conquer on “Drowned” is definitely a sound that works strongly in favour of all three-players and their overall sound. I won’t single it out directly as my favourite tune on this EP…cause there truly is a lot of great material with depth here and I don’t want to take away from any of that – so I’ll just say that maybe, just maybe I might have spun “Drowned” an extra ten or fifteen times outside of the listed track-order…maybe… I gotta admit…that does sound like something I’d be inclined to do…
But if ANYTHING confirms how not crazy I am, and how our influences truly DO make an impact on our lives & music…”Lesson Learned” starts out in a Waylon-esque twang and gentle country-sound to the guitar and vocals. By far and away the largest departure from the initial sounds on this record – but again, For All Recorded Time has done this cleverly…the transition from the rough-rock in the first three tunes starts with the pop-melodies in the rock of “Drowned” before lightening-up one final degree to “Lesson Learned” at the end – so that progression to get here feels flawlessly natural and easy to take in. Duffey sings with an added southern-drawl as this final tune begins…and true to form – For All Recorded Time eventually finds their way back to the rock-side of themselves as “Lessons Learned” builds on itself towards the middle to burst brightly in the melody. The guitars come in grinding hard, Duffey amps himself up and just around the two-minute mark snaps out of his near-country trance to bring it all closer to American-rock – and those smart, relatable hooks are once again prevalent as they have been throughout the album. They definitely understand song-writing, how to entertain and really captivate through a wide-variety of sounds – For All Recorded Time rock-out impressively on this new EP – I dig it…you will too.
Find out everything you need to know about For All Recorded Time at their official page at: http://forallrecordedtime.com
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