From a reviewers point of view, summing up the "Ltd Edition" CD presents a bit of a dilemma. Unsigned bands have a tendency to put out their own albums from time to time, and there will always be somebody out there who enjoys the style of music represented and can write a fair and appreciative review. In "Ltd Edition", however, LaZee productions and the Metropolis Lounge have given us such a diverse selection of local talent on one disc that it is near to impossible to find anybody who can appreciate every genre showcased here and do the album the justice it deserves.
New band De Atocha, for example, gives us the stylish and moody track "Feeling you", which feels like a bizarre union between 80's dance and easy listening and has you alternatively wanting to jump up and go crazy on the dance floor or lay back and mellow out. With absolutely no lyrics, "Feeling you" is nearly 6 minutes of mellow dance, sending me back to my musical youth when synthesiser music was all the rage and people rushed out to buy the latest album of sounds content in the knowledge that no lyrics would be getting in the way.
At the other end of the diversity scale, Justified Meat Content is loud and bad. It is also roll-around-on-the-floor hilarious, although I seriously doubt that this was the intention. In this track, Kraynium have given us some serious "moshing" music, and done it in a completely overboard way. For several minutes, I was totally convinced that I was listening to a pack of rabid dogs barking at each other - I mean, modern music is well known for its lack of original lyrics or lyrics that can be heard at all, but this track goes WAY beyond this. For a few seconds in the middle, the band suddenly become remarkably lucid for just long enough to scream out their names and countries of origin to the "crowd" for no obvious reason, and then the rabid dogs are back for another couple of minutes.
I have to say that I have listened to this track several times, and love every minute of it - but probably for all the wrong reasons. I love it for the same reason students love putting Captain Pugwash or The Clangers on the video after a serious night down the pub - it creases me up every time I hear it, and I haven't even been drinking!
This is exactly the sort of music I hate, and yet I love Justified Meat Content - and that is probably the highest endorsement anybody could give. Go figure. If you like serious head-thumping music and your idea of a good night out is to come home with a splitting headache and a huge grin without having touched a drop of alcohol, then this is the sort of music for you. Pop the CD in, skip to track 10, crank the volume up and wait for the neighbours to complain...
Somewhere in the middle comes "Chekira" with their superb offering "How to Save your Life". The band describe themselves as punksters, although I always have a problem with this description as the word "punk" has come to mean just about anything over the last 25 years. Compare "How to Save your Life" with "Anarchy in the UK" or "God Save the Queen" by the Sex Pistols, and you will instantly see what I mean. This is a great track, with some amazing sounds and quality playing from the band - in fact, it could easily be one of my favourites on the album - but I do think it would benefit Chekira to perhaps invent their own name for their style, because "Punk" doesn't really tell me much nowadays.
For those of you who like to hear the guitar played as it should be, "Flatfield" show us their considerable talent with the instrument while showcasing their pop-rock band. "Evo Fist", as the track is called, has some well put together guitar instrumentals a la dire straits interspersed with the lyrics, which ought to please all those guitar aficionados out there.
Also on guitar, we have "Kinch" with their track "Cooler". Here, we are given a slightly mellower Indie Rock sound with much quieter vocals.
Possibly the oldest band on the CD - having formed in 1995 - "Blue" give us the highly original "Making Waves". There is definite influence here from a number of genres, including dance and indie, but the sound is original enough to make it stand up on its own.
There is plenty here for everybody - certainly enough to fill several pages of this site if I were to describe every track. I have attempted to describe some of my favourites and others that just stand out - but with a total of thirteen tracks of local talent, "Ltd Edition" is well worth adding to your collection. Support Peterborough's local talent and head over to http://www.peterborough.net/lazee/ to pick yourself up a copy of the album. Let us know what you think - we can add your comments to this page.
