Album Review

The Voices – The Sound Of A Young America

• 26th May 2007

It’s the opening track of their new mini-album, and The Voices come bursting out of the blocks with the kind of false hope not seen since Axl Rose first tried to salvage some pride from the wreckage of his ego-driven band by reforming Guns ‘N’ Roses. The title track has everything: blistering pace, enviable ambience and heaps of promise. Unfortunately this is rarely replicated in the remainder of the seven-track offering. One problem may simply be The Voices’ style: think Oceansize or OK Computer-era Radiohead, but without any noteworthy vocals. While initially this provides a welcome change from bands dominated by a prepossessing front man or woman, it is too much to take over the course of 45 unrelenting minutes.
This Port Talbot trio definitely have talent, but hopefully by the time their third album comes along they will have discovered how to utilise it to its full effect. If they fail to do so, then I fear that their promising career may be over before it has truly begun.