- New Album Stream, Interview & Review -
Athens, Greece three piece band Girls On Bread Have just released their debut LP "A Great Slam And Then Some." This music instantly caught me off guard with it's sense of adventure and fullness. Come listen to this "adventure rock" as you get to know the band in this review and subsequent interview.
Beginning with "Knowledge is Power" immediately I notice this band has a ton of talent and knows how to make math rock sound fun and catchy while not being overly technical.
The ups and downs of this song bring forth excitement as well as reflection.
"Ramen Noodles" is my favorite song on the record. A bright and twinkly guitar riff noodles its way down to slow pace inviting everyone else to linger in a dwelling of introspection, while preparation is made for the upcoming blast of harmonic strumming and explosive drumming accompanied by background "Hey!" shouts from the band. A short 3 note hook comes back in and reminds me of the song "Tiny Coffins" by my favorite band Invalids. It's always the simple parts that stick out the most.
"Dirtmouth" is another favorite track from this album, a beautifully written tapping guitar riff starts things out proceeded by a drum-roll which leads to a very quiet spastic thrashy breakdown riff. More background "Hey!" vocals come in to introduce the original soft noodley riff. This song comes full circle and does not fail to impress. Elements of post rock are involved especially during the slow, build-up parts. In the end it sounds almost like punk rock with the fast drum beat and uniform strumming.
Track 6 "(parenthesis)" serves as a brief interlude and I encourage anyone who wants to know what a "Lo-FI" recording sounds like to listen to this fifty second long track.
"Kotaro" Writing about math rock can get monotonous since most bands are using the same techniques, tapping, twinkly, stop-start, odd time signatures, boom there's your review. So I will attempt to focus on the emotion that this song facilitates for me instead. Kotaro begins with a passionate and seductive guitar riff twinkling like Polaris so bright in the night sky. The following riff makes me amped and pumped, the upbeat strumming brings a sense of motivation to the mix. the following noodley tapping reminds me of why I love this music, trying to imagine how to play these tapping parts always crosses my mind when listening to math rock. The following stop-start section acts as a bridge to a cool down period where a solo guitar forces me to reflect within and find something inside myself, while I don't know exactly what I'm looking for in here I still know why I search, there's something I'm holding back, I know I can make music this good if I put my mind to it. The ending plucking part stands out because I can tell there's no tapping or hammer-ons like usual.
Girls On Bread knows exactly how to lull you into a sense of deep reflection and then suddenly pull you out of it with a drastic change in moods, time signatures and overall energy. This music is not anything to be taken lightly, This music holds something over most other music: HEART. This music has heart like no other band does. GOB makes it easy for you to get lost in your own mind remember who you are as a person and then make you remember that this life and the joy it brings is worth living for and at times even fighting for.
-M Chan
INTERVIEW:
1. How did your band form? Me (Stefanos - guitar) and Kouve (drums) go way back in time. After trying to play Nirvana at our basement in our early years, and transitioning to the metal-core trend afterwards, we finally found our haven in the melodies and rhythms of math rock. Then Manthos (bass) came along.
2. What are your biggest influences musically? toe and Tom's Story was our first touch with math rock. We could write a ton of math rock/indie/post rock bands that influenced us in a way (Two Door Cinema Club, Feed Me Jack, Clever Girl, Covet to name a few) until we realized how we wanted our sound to be like. Also, we have always been vibing hard with Coldplay. Like who doesn't?
3. Who are your favorite bands?
Coldplay, TTNG, Delta Sleep, Slipknot, Feed Me Jack, Porter Robinson, BadBadNotGood.
4. What are you trying to convey through your music emotionally or otherwise.
An emotional/happy road trip with friends, with a few stops of sadness on the way. 5. What are the biggest things you want to accomplish with your band?
Travel the world and meet people/play for people that really vibe with our music. Also, share the stage with our favorite bands at a big fest, and become someone's favorite band.
Sounds great thank you guys for talking with me about your music and I hope to see you play in the USA someday! -M Chan
