EP REVIEW
Eva Bartok - Self Titled
Eva Bartok - Self Titled
I’ve been very busy of late so finding time to listen to new music without distraction has been tricky, and to write something coherent about such music even trickier. However, as the press release for this EP from Eva Bartok said it only lasted ten minutes and I was in a particularly good mood I thought I'd give it a quick blast over breakfast and throw together a few words just as quickly.
Eva Bartok… no, not the glamorous Hungarian-British actress of the 50’s and 60’s, but a new Welsh band who make noisy post punk. My initial thoughts were that it was a loud, speaker-busting chaotic mash of grating guitars on the edge of feedback, drums and cymbals recorded on the edge too, slightly distorting and breaking up, where nothing seemed especially tight, without musical direction or the immediacy of a catchy chorus, and with a vocal that constantly hit a screamed pitch which started to make my head properly hurt. Quite honestly I found Eva Bartok rather annoying, at first.
Now it came to pass that later in the day I happened to find myself in a particularly bad mood… and I listened to the EP once again, and while most of my initial thoughts about the EP remained, I no longer found it annoying. Quite the opposite in fact.
It IS loosely played, but not out of time… and it’s great because of that. It has the human feel that quantized time-perfect recordings so often lack. It DOES sound chaotic, it IS frenzied, but the mind starts to make sense of it after a while, gouging out the earworms lounging within the uproar. This is a band writing about real life, and life is not always pleasant. The vocal that hurt my head was now a perfect mirror to my mood, the primal scream I wanted to shout myself.
So, a warning to anyone who prefers their music a little clinical, even slightly poppy, then this EP is unlikely to be for you. However, if you find yourself in a rut with life or want to hear something that hits out at the world, or ‘understands’ how you feel then Eva Bartok’s self titled debut EP could be just the ticket. There’s potential for greatness I’m sure, perhaps even up there alongside my personal favourites We Are Knuckle Dragger. Fans of that band would do well to check them out.
As I mentioned this is just a quick post so I’m not going to go into more detail, far better to watch the video for the song ‘Chess Club’ below, but if you like it then find out more at www.facebook.com/evabartokband. The EP is self released and out today!
(Published 23/08/2019)
