Record Label: Stolen Transmission
Genre: Goth Rock
Band Link: link
Buy on Amazon.com link

The Horrors are the big new buzz band out of the UK, but unlike most of the bands that make it stateside, these guys aren’t your typical Brit-pop or Strokes wannabes. With a sound somewhere between the Damned and the Misfits, the band is as notorious for their image – five anemic looking goth kids who must really hate the sun – as their sound.

I guess it’s refreshing to hear a band pick up that gothy organ-filled rock and sound like a more satanic Zombies ripoff, but did anyone notice that this album just isn’t very good? Each track really only has one musical idea that is repeated one way or another with barky vocals that do nothing to compliment the songs as a whole. The first track steals the bassline from Peter Gunn, and really doesn’t do much with it. That said, the organ on the album is totally awesome, and really is the only distinguishing feature that sets these guys apart from countless Joy Division disciples. Additionally, I have the feeling that these guys take themselves too seriously. Especially given the fact that they tend to conjure up imagery that is more Addams Family than real ‘horror’. The energy is there, and the sound isn’t terrible, it just isn’t much more than a surface perception thing; these guys will ride a wave of popularity for a while, but unless they make some drastic sonic expansion on a follow-up album, they’re going to disappear faster than a corpse being reburied for some reason.

Bottom Line: Subpar image-conscious rock band with cool influences but lame songs.
Notable Tracks: Count In Fives, Horror’s Theme, Sheena Is A Parasite
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