From delusions of adequacy
| I'm sure it goes without saying, but CD singles suck - they are too damn short. It's hard to recognize whether the band has any redeemable qualities because they are prone to choose the most accessible track as a single and perhaps a throwaway B-side. On the other spectrum, full- length albums are not always preferred, too. Some albums start off incredibly strong, but as the album continues, the band may show its weak spots. In contrast, EPs are just perfect, especially when you are listening to the band for the first time. They are just long enough to get a decent picture of a band and just short enough so that you don't bite your thumbs off for wasting your time. Fortunately, no biting is necessary when listening to Fiesel's self- titled EP. This is the band's first release, minus a couple appearances on compilation albums. The trio of Jerry Sivret (guitar), Jesse Thomas (bass), and Dan Benoit (drum) create visceral, hyper punk with an intelligent twist. Each track is hyper-delineated and in-your-face, focusing on a consistent mood with a dark undercurrent. Sivret's angular guitar slices through the mix, marrying heavy guitar riffs and intricate guitar lines in musical heaven, while Thomas' simple yet effective bass lines compliment the dissonant guitar notes. However, the true kick-in-the- teeth is delivered by Benoit's spastic drum beats. Benoit seems to cram as many drum-fills as he possibly can, and not only are they appropriate, but they are delivered with an extra "fuck you, cheeseface" attitude. The EP begins with "Autoscan," a one-and-a-half minute instrumental ball of static that will have you jumping on nails and chewing on wood in no time. The fast-paced drums carry the song, as the guitars catapult you head-first into a brick wall. "Reservoir" follows with its menacing three-part vocals that rip through the complex rhythms and tight musicianship. The rest of the EP continues in similar fashion, coasting on polyrhythmic instrumentation and complex song structures. The EP's strongest track is the closer, "Vicksburg." The song runs through an array of sections, with the brightest being toward the end of the song where Fiesel flex its math rock muscles, bestowing a complicated 3/4 to 5/4 to 7/4-metered chord progression. Although the EP is consistently strong throughout, there are a couple minor flaws. One flaw would probably have to be the lack of variety. It would've been nice to have heard a couple slower songs, providing some needed personality, which could also serve as the reset-button in between the faster songs. The other flaw worth mentioning is the vocals. Don't get me wrong, the vocals are extremely powerful, but with the whole trio capable of lending their voices, one would think that they could come up with more creative melodies. Minor flaws aside: In less than 18 minutes, Fiesel take you into its world and spit you out like that nasty vein you occasionally find in a Chicken McNugget. The scary thing is that the EP is Fiesel's first release, and according to their label, Fiesel is heading into the studio to record a full-length. Things look like they'll only get better from here. Let's hope they retain the raw attitude and visceral energy, and maybe some added math into the equation for the next album. In any case, this reviewer is eagerly awaiting the follow-up, as the EP has passed the test with extended middle fingers. -- Marvin |
From Splendid E-Zine
| This trio takes the self-conscious artiness of college rock and gives it a much needed dose of cock -- rock, that is. "Reservoir" features high-falutin', double-tracked shouting verses broken up by blustering guitar freakouts. "Happy Sweet 16, Judi Real" saves its rock for the end, at which point it lets rip with a minute worth of choked guitar distortion. Other numbers, such as "Resonant Frequency", simply rock all the way through. Because Fiesel drown their intelligent indie tendencies in calculated guitar buffoonery, they remind me of Lizard 99 (a band you've probably never heard of, but who rule just the same) or Australia's Cave Spiders. With this approach, they produce rock songs with plenty of pump-your-fist energy and an immediate accessibility that belie their well-constructed and complex composition. This idea is best illustrated by "Action Destroys Perfection", an aptly-titled instrumental with carefully timed changes that nevertheless sound rakishly out of control. The band is currently at work on a full-length release which, if it's anything like this EP, will surely sail over the heads of their most ardent fans. -- Ron Davies |
From FUBARM
| Yeah, I found this for a dollar in Kent, and that makes me so much better off than you. Fiesel just plain kicks out the rock and roll jams. I picked this out of the mire because it was recorded by Converge's Kurt Ballou. I guess I was expecting a Converge clone, but Fiesel is not that at all. They bust out enough algebra rock to get you working on your differentiations again. They do so without abrasive screaming or metalcore, instead throwing variables at your head through a punk rock fury. Another cool element is that they alternate instrumentals with sing-songs. Nice. The opener is a furious rocker that says, "Take that!" to your ears. An instrumental, it pounds out the rock with the quickness. "Reservoir" then kicks in with its three part vocals that are very Liars-esque. It is also the first hint that the listener gets that this is closer to emo than Converge. Complex song structures dazzle you and get your backside moving. Dance! The lyrics are cool too! Wow! This band just doesn't stop! Detached coffee-house poetry is lobbed upside you brain along with trigonomic riffs and more start-stops than a sixty year old lady on a road trip. I can't even say which track is my favorite, because the whole thing rocks with a fervor. I will say that "Happy Sweet 16, Judi Real" was the low spot on the disc during the first listen, but even it is a sweet rock and roller. I guess I could say that the instrumental, "Action Destroys Perfection," is in the running for my favorite. It has this humorous stop-time guitar anti-solo in the middle that makes me smile. Good stuff. Did I talk about the tones? Yeah, the bass tone is awesome. In an effort to discover more about Fiesel, I searched them on the web and found a guy saying that the basslines were simple... but I just totally disagree. There are notes pouring out of everywhere here, crust addled and fueled by the devil. The guitar spends a lot of time with melodic picking, but the rocking out parts are dominated by dissonant stabs at your ears. Tasty! The drums are huge, but not overpowering. This is a power trio that delivers the power suggested by the description. The vocals are a make-or-break element for Fiesel, admittedly. I've mentioned the Liars sounding attack of "Reservoir," but one could also draw strong comparisons to the Jesus Lizard and Helmet... anyway you cut it, we're looking at post-hardcore goodness that left me completely satisfied. It is cool that it ends abruptly after dragging out "hold my hand as i die." Wicked cool. -Jeighsohn/FUBARM. |
From Aiding & Abetting
| Some folks won't let the Jesus Lizard rest in peace. Thank God. Every once in a while I crave some serious intensely rhythmic noise. And about that time is when something like Fiesel comes along. Much like Kepone, Fiesel doesn't much care whether or not vocals are part of the mix. When used, they serve merely as another conduit by which the general cacophony is spread. You know, as particularly enthralling screeches and shouts and such. Every song revolves around a rhythmic core. Oh, there are tangents to be followed (after all, this sound is a descendant of Slint, among many others), but even the byways are rigidly controlled. Spontaneous sounding, surely, but still welded tightly to the fuselage. This short taste simply makes me ravenous for more. --Jon Worley |
From indieville
| Fiesel: three men who've just released this EP, a sound freak-out that's bent on blasting away your mind in an angry barrage of guitar terror. And while that description may get you expecting a bloody grindcore band or a dime-a-dozen death metal gorefest, you can be sure that Fiesel's up to something different. Hailing from Massachusetts, the band is more indie rock than anything else. Instead of playing in the traditional vein, though, Fiesel drops the anaesthetic and just goes all-out on your ear drums. As a result, the six songs on this EP are all positively charming. Instrumental tracks like "Autoscan" and "Action Destroys Perfection" are fierce enough to get your brain cells hacking away at each other. "Reservoir" and "Vicksburg," the two songs with vocals, also manage to be magnificently powerful. Altogether, this EP is a vicious batch of melodic guitar noise. If you want some music to destroy things to, pick this EP up - it's a mere four dollars, postage paid! And hold on to your hats, too, because Fiesel's new album is due out soon. |
From junkmedia.org
| I've always considered a debut EP sort of like getting invited out to dinner with new friends. The time is limited, so everyone is on their best behavior during the dinner, hoping, in retrospect, that the banter was witty, the wine was chilled and the whatever was served for dessert did not overwhelm the dinner. And, like a dinner, the CD experience is quite brief -- but the impressions are lasting. Fiesel is the six song CD-EP by the band Fiesel. For the appetizer, "Autoscan" works fairly well. As an instrumental, it struck me as something like a theme song from a 1960s action- adventure television series, though with a rougher, post-1980s musical edge. Opening with a bit of speedy drumming and mushy cymbal sound, the guitars do good service to the melody with some aggressive riffing. A few changes in time signature provide some auditory interest, but when a song is as short as this, the changes seem to be more perfunctory than essential. "Reservoir" features Perry Farrell-esque vocals, or perhaps more of a Geddy Lee on helium- while-an-antagonist-drops-a-brick-on-his-foot sort of quality captures the essence more evocative -- which can serve as either a recommendation or a warning, depending upon one's interests. I look over at my music shelves and note the absence of both Jane's Porno Addiction and Rush, so please filter my take on the vocals though my preferences. The melody is carried by another round, single-note guitar line, similar to those in "Autoscan." Similar to "Autoscan" as well, the band finds their musical signature by offering abrupt variety in the song, with "Reservoir" leaping back and forth between the guitar lines and some heavily accented power- chording. "Happy Sweet 16, Judi Real" is a slower number, with open sonic spaces -- which provides a more meditative feel for the song; unlike the previous two songs on the EP, it doesn't (initially) try to do everything in a single song. On that basis, it works quite well as an understated, yet tense, guitar-based instrumental for the first two minutes. At that point, the guitars become a bit more distorted, and the whole song changes providing some new musical ground, satisfying the listener until 2:50, when a third section of the song begins, with more aggressive guitars and drumming. "Action Destroys Perfection" starts with the prickly high sounds of guitar strings being tortured... and then some spacy guitar distortion that would have been at home in Piper at the gates of Dawn-era Pink Floyd. Then it changes again into something altogether different -- something fairly thrashy, but with an (occasionally) interesting guitar piece layered over the noise. Reflecting on the entire CD, the guitars were bit of fun. The biggest challenge faced by Fiesel, however, is the urge to create songs that are overly busy. Taking a simple idea -- as are most of their chord progressions or melody lines -- and inserting three or more drastically different pieces into the same song is a bit excessive. A single musical idea, explored fully, will provide a much more rewarding listening experience than the fractious approach applied here. It makes one want to salute the first Wire album: similar ideas were employed by Fiesel, but where Fiesel grafts one song fragment to another and another, Wire would simply stop and move on to another piece altogether. The strongest hope I can make for Fiesel is to get a strong producer for their next record, in order to rein in some of their tendencies to do too much in a single piece of music. So, to return to the meal analogy: I'd be happy to dine with the band again, but on the condition that they reign in some of their more excessive attempts at impressing the diner -- the task remaining is to learn to better feed and entertain them. I think I'll take dessert at home tonight. -- Ken King |
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