Alright the Captain's Debut album "SNIB" is available on Pre-Order now over at Field Records.

http://www.field-records.com/shop/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=81

** This is on Pre-order and will ship for the 7th Feb **

Tracks:
1.Rostov Could Get It
2.Neo Tokyo
3.Mega Mega Drive
4.Guilt
5.#33
6.Pay Off
7.Peanut Worm
8.Soundtrack Your death
9.Honey Badger
10.Clamp

Reviews:

Alright the Captain are due to release their debut album 'SNIB' early next month and I'm glad to be able to offer you my incites on the first listen to this slab of genius, which is exactly what it is. The band tour the U.K. at the end of February but currently there's no date in Glasgow so I intend to write very nice things in order to entice a show up here in the cold Scottish air. Before I talk about the music itself, it's worth pointing out the brilliant album cover with it's wolves and skulls looking like a piece of complex graffiti. Bravo on that one boys. There is so much going on in this album that it's difficult to talk about absolutely everything without playing down how brilliantly conceived and pieced together it all is. SNIB draws a lot of comparisons to bands spanning a wide range of genres but as a body of work it's completely original, and quite honestly you've never heard anything like it.

The album features heavily a lot of time signature changes that keep it interesting and it demonstrates an incredible technical ability from each musician. Take track number two, 'Neo Tokyo' which opens with a weaving guitar sound which is then joined by an equally impressive bass line, it draws a lot of comparison to Battles (see also track 6, Pay Off if you're a fan of that band) but not for long, as the track decides to get heavy and punches you in the face with it's heavy outro that reminds me of math rock maniacs Sikth. This carries through onto the next track 'Mega Mega Drive' which is a perfect example of the band's ability to fit melodic passages between stabs of Metal and distortion. Speaking of Metal, check out penultimate track which opens with someone yelling "HONEY BADGER HONEY BADGER!" incidentally the title of the song. It's absolutely manic.

The brilliant 'Soundtrack to your Death' is very much a post-rock track which will be familiar to fans of Mogwai. But it still manages to display frantic guitar work and quite frankly, stunning drum work. 'Guilt' the fourth track on the album is the stand out for me, which calls to mind one of my favourite albums 'Spiderland' by Slint, (without the stream of consciousness babbling poetry) it's quiet sound builds a fantastic atmosphere before giving way to the inevitable heavy climax. To talk about one highlight is a disservice to the album as it's full of them. From track one to ten, SNIB is a display of technical proficiency, electronic manipulation, full on noise and precise percussion.

It really has to be heard and with every listen you find something else to appreciate. As said before with so many influences of great bands the album will strike a chord with a lot of different fans of different music, and that really isn't a bad thing. Music snobs get off your high horse and add some chaos to your music catalogue, let 'Alright the Captain' show you what they can do.

5/5 - Beard Rock

Back in 2009 Alright The Captain released their ephemeral three track EP debut, the simply titled, 123. At a scant ten minutes it proved to be one of the more interesting and alluring efforts of that year, with regards to debuts. It’s rare that a band can make such a strong impression with so little, and it really was a case of quality over quantity.

Snib, their full length debut, very much takes all of the ideas that were buzzing about in 123 and builds upon the foundation. The quantity has risen but fear not for the quality has more than risen with it.

The crazy math elements and all the rabid, maniacal arrangements are intact. Also, there’s the unmitigated Primus influence too. Nods to their influence in the funky bass playing may become tiresome after a while but it is still present and Todd Wood’s skills intertwining with Marty Toner’s frenetic riffs mean Snib has a far more unique edge than their contemporaries.

Rostov Could Get It initiates the proceedings with the booming crunch of the bass and guitar work almost Deftones-like in tone. The chaos then gives way to an exuberant melodious close. It’s followed by Neo Tokyo, a track characterised by vibrant and vivid fret dancing that spirals uncontrollably. It’s one of the tracks that originally appeared on 123, all of which have been re-recorded and injected with an intense new vigour.

The credo of Snib is clearly the dichotomy of meandering, hypnotic passages and the crunching cacophony. There are a multitude of math-laden riffs and arrangements akin to Adebisi Shank but also serene whirs and hums that hark to more elegant influences that have found their way into Alright The Captain’s palette.

Take for example Soundtrack Your Death, which is a drill in intriguing twists and turns. It launches with a forceful and entangling trade off of guitar and bass, then erupts cataclysmically into an otherworldly dense mid section, only to fizzle out into an airy, near-lullaby refrain.

Snib is a solid debut full length and the natural progression from 123 in both energy and creativity, the album displays a healthy avidity for mayhem for all to see and in the live environment, these ten songs are likely to take on a whole new life.

8/10 - Drop D