Towers of London

How Rude She Was (2006)

Jordan Rogowski

[Ed.'s Note: Anchors received this a few months before information on the recently released full-length, 'Blood, Sweat & Towers,' was released. We will be reviewing that as well shortly.]

I'm beginning to think that Towers of London just don't understand the concept of an LP. Here's an except from my review of their last EP:

That's right -- believe it or not, Towers of London have returned with 'On a Noose,' another two-song EP logging a ridiculous, outlandish, six minutes of music. Now, I really don't understand the rationale between releasing two two-song EPs on [separate] CD. If they were 7", that's understandable, but that's not the route they took, so here I am again.

This go-round however, doesn't offer just one more miniscule minute of music, it offers another whole song! They don't want to overextend themselves, you know? The only reason I'm willing to cut the band slack on their absurd recording practices is quite simple -- they still write good songs. How Rude She Was is much less punk though, and much more `80s metal influenced. It still works for the band, as they always had a penchant for guitar solos and over the top vocals. It's not really much of a departure, if anything, the only thing really different is the rhythms have slowed a bit.

So, knowing that, there really shouldn't be anything keeping you from enjoying these three, er, two new songs. The last track is actually an acoustic rendition of "Fuck It Up," which appeared on one of the previous EPs. It's not particularly engaging, as the singer's vocals fall somewhat flat in that setting. The first 2 songs implement his style perfectly though, as the slow, bouncy rhythms perfectly usher in the chorus on the title track. The closing guitar solos really invigorate things, and lead well into the middle song, "Novello's Bordello." The more hard-hitting riffs and vocals evoke a more punk feeling than the other 2 tracks, though the decidedly `80s metal vocals curb that feeling a bit.

Maybe someday this band will release an LP, or hell, even an EP with more than 2 or 3 songs on it. I'd be interested to see how their style translates into the long-playing format, but in the meantime, if you want a good 10-minute kick in the ass, Towers of London, just as last time, will be more than happy to oblige.