ENDLESS HIGH - Leave It All Behind CD

This 11 track album opens with a burst of electricity as “Panic” leaps into life via spiralling lead guitar, driving, lurching, indie-dance rhythms, deep muscular bass and Draymin-esque vocals to provide a rapid paced slice of songwriting that's one glorious hook in itself, spirited in pace and passion at the same time, a sure-fire way to start an album. “Confusion” continues the pace only this time the rhythms are faster, the guitars swirling round at high register and riffing away brilliantly, as well as soaring leads that really catch your attention, as the bass pounds deep in the mix. The vocals are once again delivered with strength, tending to rise above the backing and fly rather than bulldoze their way into your consciousness, while the verses are urgent yet atmospheric, the tags at the end forming the hooks that stick around in your head although the whole pace of the song and its arrangement lends itself to commercial potential in a big way. “Take A Look Around” will appeal to anyone into The Draymin, with a definitely similar feel and spirit, although this lot tend to inject things with a bit more venom coming on like a mix between that band and Dunfermline's Beatnic Prestige only more urgent than both, short, sharp and to the point. “Hold On” starts with a more atmospheric textural guitar before stumbling beats and beefy bass emerge as the lead guitar jangles away and then the vocals come in – and it's pure vintage first album-era Stone Roses modernised for the 21st century – and that's stunning. If you loved any of the classic Stone Roses tracks, you'll love this – the lightly echoed, Brown-esque vocal actually manages to go one better by taking off and flying while the guitar work has more depth and density to it as the song is just exceptional, driving headlong into your heart with strength, fast-paced lurching rhythms and that superb vocal delivery – an absolute gem. “Pass The Blame” continues this feel and, to a degree, sound, tending to mix it with more of the Scottish indie sound that's gone before, as that high-rising lead guitar circles over the fantastic song as the rhythm section motor on, while the vocals continue unabated with a delivery that just doesn't catch breath and has you transfixed throughout, once again, the song's running time kept economical and effective. “Own My Own” returns to Stone Roses territory in a bigger way, the trademark lurch and stumble of the rhythms as jangly guitar and stuttering riffs herald a stretched-out, harmonised Brown-esque vocal that fits like a glove as the song strides on to perfection, injecting original twists and turns that makes this original band stay original. “Hard To Breathe” begins with slowly pounding bass right upfront, solid lurching drums, a multiplicity of droning, jangly guitars and more of those wondrously full-sounding, uplifting, strong and emotive vocals to deliver this wickedly strong song at a mighty mid-pace that can't help but burn holes in your heart in the best possible way as an absolute stormer of a song erupts into life with some seriously sizzling guitar leads and riffs in the background as the song drives ever on to magnificent degree. “Open Up” delivers more of the same quality and sound as before, only here slightly slower and less intense, but no less solid and with a similar depth to the playing and vocals that simply can't help but grab your attention. “Am Not Your Enemy” is an altogether different beast, this time allowing all the previous elements of quality and distinction to coalesce to magical effect, so that you get this roar of electric guitar, urgent yet multi-tracked vocals, a fantastic hook, a memorable chorus, strident verses, rock solid rhythms, electrifying lead guitar, dense riffs and, overall, a song that is one towering monster of magnificence that has “hit” written all over it, and a song that many of their more well known indie peers would have killed to have come up with, again, economical and nothing wasted. “Pick Me Up To Kick Me Down” provides more power to the dancefloor, only in that more urgent Stone Roses vein, but here there's a real strength to the riffing guitars as the vocals lift and soar high above the rhythms and fast-lurching beats, the whole thing more electric and less atmospheric, another song powering into life yet sung from the heart and soul with an urgency, passion and attack that is simply stunning. The album ends with “Submission”, a track that's in total contrast to the rest of rhe album, only lasting a minute or so and really just mantra like verses over rippling guitar and bass as the hypnotic song slowly fades into the distance, weird but, somehow, fitting. Overall, though, a seriously hot album that you really have to investigate if you want modern indie with a few familiar landmarks, written, arranged, played, sung and produced absolutely faultlessly throughout.

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