ZEITGEIST MAGAZINE
Trim the Barber EP Review
Words by Sean Williams | 4th April 2012
It'd be easy to ignore a band who describe their sound as "psychedelic-post-punk-shoegaze", who go on to add that they formed "from a sense of despair at the alienation and devolution of modern life". In these current doom and gloom times that could be pretty much any bunch of angst rich, cash poor, twenty something year olds in a band who are fucked off at the world, but Trim The Barber might just be that rare gem who are turning that dejection into something beautiful and poignant.
East London based band Trim The Barber's self titled debut EP comes out on April 9th, and, while not quite the finished article, it definitely shows huge promise. Melancholic yet with direction, their sound is layered and cinematic in ways that are reminiscent of New York band A Place To Bury Strangers, but with an almost pop, post-punk tinge to it that is more in the style of Gang Of Four.
Stand out track 'Digitalis' upon first listen (and even now on what must be my twentieth) is vocally incredible, like Paul Weller back in his early The Jam days. The delivery is venomous, the vocals spat out and meaningful, but that's where the similarity with 'The Modfather' ends. Trim The Barber's eponymous EP perhaps won't blow you away, but like so many bands, this EP I feel is a work in progress, and a hugely promising one at that.
Zeitgeist's Rating: 4/5
