More Material - Snow Owls For A Better China (Cover Artwork)
Staff Pick

More Material

Snow Owls For A Better China (2004)

self-released


Although they were short lived, More Material has left their mark by way of a five song EP. Three of the songs are on their PureVolume site, but really, it's the two others that completely stick out and blow me away. I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me start over. More Material's sound can be classified as a string of continuous loops with branches of freakout noise. But that in no way does their sound justice. Their vocals range from talking to screaming, the keyboards range from dancey to spooky, the guitar ranges from screeching chords to heavy riffs, the bass ranges from repetitive, rhythmic one note strokes to huge killer lines, and altogether it's held by some of the most inventive drumming that follows crazy patterns and shows off the bands talent and ingenuity. I guess I would end up throwing it all under some sort of label like "psychedelic-post-hardcore" or some bullshit like that, but labels suck. Just listen to it.

The problem with this band is that the lyrics are beautifully written, but are difficult to decipher during screaming parts. Lines like "I'm not living anything today, I'm just remembering it tomorrow" and "And couldn't kids be a perfect catastrophe for every party hit that tastes like medicine, red eyed and awake peeling mascara snakes off your face, lipstick smears on the mirror screaming suck suck suck" get lost among the noise. But I guess that's okay, because the music is amazing in and of itself.

You can say that this review is all hype. You can say that you've never heard of this band and that you don't care, and that you never want to hear this band. That's fine. But I will let you know that I've been listening to songs from this EP for about three months now, and each time I find some new part that I love, or some little piece that seemed hidden upon the first listen.

I also realize that you won't be able to find this at a record store anywhere, so if you really dig it and want to buy it, send an e-mail to colinuriah@hotmail.com . Also check the link for their PureVolume site.