The Vindickers- ‘Before The Fall’ (02/11/2012 –Self-Released)

    Originally formed in 2008, The Vindickers reformed last year to release their debut full-length album ‘Before the Fall.’ They played at various festivals throughout the summer and having been working on new material for their follow-up record ‘Imba’, which is due for release later this year. From Hastings, The Vindickers gain their inspiration from the likes of Green Day, Foo Fighters and New Found Glory.

    The quartet also reflect strong Indie influences in ‘These Love Songs Don’t Make Sense’, which comes across as typically Pop Punk with a mature streak in terms of the infectious melody. The bass and drums are punchy and the guitaring is as rapid as it is in a Green Day track. The band seems very tight as a collective, particularly with regards to harmonising vocals and melodic changes in the track. The Vindicker’s production is also refreshingly interesting, with a tannoy-style opening to ‘Office Goss’, which is an unusual combination of Reggae-influenced sections that form one of the chirpiest Pop Punk songs you will ever hear.

    Clearly passionate about what they do, the band’s sound breaks free from the restrictions of Pop Punk and have made sure each track on this ridiculously long, 14-track album is varied. ‘Surrogate’ is heavier, grittier and angrier than other tracks of ‘Before the Fall’ and illustrated a Rise Against style bass led-melody and varied vocals to show off a rapid, furious composition. ‘The Ones That Get Away’ is quite weak vocally speaking, but the musical variety really saves it, showing just how shocking it is that The Vindickers were unsigned until March last year with Time Line Music. For a debut album, ‘Before the Fall’ depicts a bright future for a band who are very sure of who they want to be musically.

    Opening with a string section, that quickly morphs into the noteable sounds of a battle scene with the clashing of swords, ‘I Wanna Be a Geek’ is basically a piss-take of people who play role-play games, but recognises the fun of it. The song is brilliantly distinctive and shows how well the album flows through the mixture of sounds and styles. ‘A Mind Made Up’ boasts screamed backing vocals, harsh sounds and a swift yet emotional flair.  Considering the length of ‘Before the Fall’ it’s astounding that there doesn’t seem to be filler songs on the record; each track stands alone as polished and nurtured.

     ‘Bye Bye Mama’ is quirky with its use of sound effects of horses as it commences, showing the band’s charm and want to break the mould. Its Country and Western style and vocal editing is obviously unusual from a Pop Punk band, but with noteable lyrics like ‘So I hit her with a shovel…’, it’s light, well thought-out and considerate to the genre it makes use of. It also proves just how versatile The Vindickers are and portrays the sense of fun running through the album.

    With important issues such as drug addiction, which is tackled in ‘Old Friend’ and financial difficulty brought to light in ‘Home’, it’s clear the band put their heart into what they do. As ‘Before the Fall’ comes to a close, the title track makes use of emotions, stringed instruments and musical variety. It proves that the band is more than capable of creating beautiful musical with simply just vocals and a guitar, but also know how to bring about a build-up in a song.

    At 10 minutes and 38 seconds in length, ‘The Gen, Of Ease’ is full of breakdowns, great musical skill and a tenacious backbone, proving that The Vindickers know who they are and are well and truly running with it. With a Green Day-esque hidden track, the band keep their listeners engaged from start to finish. Made up of, spoken parts, mobile phones ringing, an impressive guitar solo, the track shows all the possibilities the band have to offer, even evolving into a Dance-inspired piece with synthesised vocals.

    The Vindickers may label themselves as a Pop Punk band with various influences, but they’re so much more than that. They’ve really pushed themselves to make their debut record as impressive, diverse and unique as possible and are meant for success.

4/5