EP Review: Friends

When I first heard the opening track Friends Don’t Let Friends Drink Alone, I was convinced it was a cover. It sounds so familiar and as good as anything by the bands that have clearly influenced Fallstate. The fact that this isn’t a cover is impressive as it is so bloody addictive and would kill it on the radio. Like all the songs on this EP it kicks along in its pop punk style (god I hate that phrase! there is nothing punk about pop punk) and I imagine the synchronised jumping on stage etc until about half way through the song there is a change, a rumble of darkness, a hint that there is more to Fallstate.

Apparently, the band only formed around two years ago but they have crammed an amazing amount of work in that time with 3 single releases, an album, and now this EP. They also won the recent Battle of The Bands at Ding Dong Lounge. Fallstate certainly aren’t slacking and this EP will bring them even more popularity.

Next track Worst Enemy sees the darker/heavier side of the band coming forward a bit more but is still soaked in the melodies that will hook people and keep them bouncing. Not as instantly catchy but I prefer the harder edge that comes through towards the end of the track.

June kicks in and again hooks instantly. The story-telling vocal style shows the songwriting talent that the band have and adds another dimension. The songs here could all be singles and as June fades away out comes Bataclan, my favourite track on the EP. Like its subject matter, this is the heaviest song on the EP and very different to Friends Don’t Let Friends… For me it is the standout track as this is the song that would most likely give this band its own identity and its own sound.

Everyone’s A Critic breezes by and closing track Memento is halfway through before I even realise that it is a different song. 

Fallstate have massive potential if they can move away from some of the more generic songs and focus more on songs like Bataclan. Songs that shape their own more unique sound. There is a battle between light and dark going on within Fallstate and it’s time to move to the darkside fellas.