Eleventh He Reaches London - the Good Fight for Harmony
RLS DATE: Dec-19-2005
STR DATE: Dec-14-2005
ARTiST: Eleventh He Reaches London
ALBUM: The Good Fight for Harmony
LABEL: n/a
GENRE: Indie
SOURCE: CDDA
BiTRATE: VBR.Kbps.44.1kHz
MODE: Joint-Stereo
TRACKS: 07
LENGH: 46:33.Minutes
RELEASE iNFO
Back when Eleventh He Reaches London started, under the stylistic description
of screamo, 99 per cent of people hadn't heard the term before, let alone knew
what it meant. Now, sadly, just about everyone has heard the term, but still
doesn't know what it means. As 'emo' has become the most misused and
misappropriated term of the year, so too has screamo followed suit, with
anything and everything being tagged with what has become an insult. The band
launch their debut album The Good Fight For Harmony on Wednesday, December 14,
at the Rosemount.
Like all good bands, there is little to Eleventh that can be assimilated into
any subculture, and little in the way of generic templates that can be applied
to their music. They don't look like a generic band and they don't sound like a
generic band because (read this carefully) they don't think like a generic
band. Imagination is the only starting point for their music, creativity its
only drive, and artistic satisfaction its only reward. Without much surprise,
the members of Eleventh themselves listen to music of similar value, and do so
with a thirst for variety.
"Collectively, we listen to a very diverse range of music, and I think our
music reflects this. We all like many of the same artists, but each of us have
quite different tastes. All of us enjoy listening to and creating music that is
dramatic, and that creates a strong sense of mood," says guitarist Jeremy. Of
course, being eclectic music listeners and creators does push Eleventh outside
of the more constrictive music scenes, but with great results for the band. "We
don't fit neatly into any one scene within Perth, and we are more than happy
about this. While some may see it as a disadvantage, for us it means we have
the pleasure of performing alongside artists playing a diverse range of styles.
Playing with the same bands and to the same crowd week in, week out tends to
get tedious, and removes any element of surprise a gig may have. It removes the
challenge of attempting to win over punters that haven't seen or heard you
before."
And win punters over the band has. From a relatively obscure beginning,
embraced mainly by smaller in-the-know people such as the eightysixmusic
promoters, and pockets of indie-savvy listeners, Eleventh have risen to become
popular with fans of everything from punk, to low fi, to metal. Conservative
listeners will almost never be turned on by the band's music, but conservative
art is not the band's aim. Their debut album, for instance, is as far from a
'point A to point B' pop record as you could get. Clocking in at nearly 47
minutes, yet comprised of a relatively meagre seven songs, The Good Fight For
Harmony is not a dance through trusted formulas and quick hook attacks akin to
Bruce Lee's one inch punch, but meanders slowly through complex and undulating
constructs. Long songs with long narratives often make for a long shelf life...
though one would expect the process of committing such an endeavour to tape
would be equally as long.
Definitely so, according to Jeremy."It was a very rewarding experience, and
comprised equal parts hard work, frustration and hyperactivity. We recorded and
mixed it over around 250 hours from April to October this year. Al Smith was a
pleasure to work with again, and I think his ideas and method were perfectly
suited to our wishes for the album. The album itself is really dense and
layered, and we took a very pedantic and detailed approach in terms of
emphasising certain sections of songs. We wanted a record that would give more
with each listen, and we are confident we have achieved that. We are definitely
a much stronger group now, both musically, and in terms of our tolerance of one
another and willingness to compromise. When there's five different opinions on
one issue, something's got to give."
The compromise has paid off well, resulting in an album that stands as a 'fuck
you' to the teams of people willing to accept mediocrity on a local level
because it is 'good for a local band'. Eleventh's cunning and daring prove that
any band, from anywhere, can be good in comparison to the rest of the world,
not just their home town. The mindless followers who have lead something as
innocuous as a title - that being screamo in this case - to mean little more
than bland music with an equally bland uniform take note; this is how you think
for yourself or, failing that, get knocked the fuck out.
TRACK TiTLE TiME
01 Coronation 03:27
02 Say You See Why So 08:50
03 Swarming 09:58
04 What Would Don Juan Say 05:25
05 Ruination 01:33
06 Chilson 07:02
07 Long Grows the List of the Live and De 10:18
TOTAL 46:33 min SiZE 74,7.Mb