Album Review

White Belt Yellow Tag – Remains E.P.

• 9th Oct 2009

Ex Yourcodenamieis:Milo mainstay, Justin Lockey and his co-conspirator for this new project Craig Pilbin. Must have been asked how Mogwai and Guillemots would sound if they combined forces and attempted krautrock, judging by the vibe given off in the title track?

Soaring vocals glide over ticking guitars, delivering a stern and striking warning about giving into your heart. Just when you feel the pace picking up, they settle back down into some maudlin dejection and, you can’t help feeling a little cheated. Especially, as you’re not sure whether or not that was the desired effect?

The influence of Mogwai comes even more to the fore in the swerving, wholly instrumentally guitar plucked ‘Control Designs and Innovations’. It caresses the mind through slow percussion clatters and nimble guitar stroking, before sparse waves of M83 veined guitars provides for stirring high points. You don’t have to listen to White Belt Yellow Tag for long, in order to figure out that they possess a desire for an epic.

‘Dalliance’, uses a similar build to the previous track before peppering it with soulful indie vocals that speak of longing and regret.
Slow booming percussion provides for a soothing feel and then the foraging vocals kick in. It feels like you’re getting three for the price songs of one, as a spasmodic guitar driven cacophony then takes over. This makes the song feel both uneven and emotionally delving.

White Belt Yellow Tag are something of an enigma at the moment, you just don’t know where they are heading?