Peep Show is the latest singles release from the Sikth breakout album, The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out, Wait For Something Wild.
And judging from the quality of ‘Peep Show', something wild has been worth waiting for.
Sikth have been hailed as ‘one of the UK's most promising new metal bands', and this new single gives them a chance to prove it. For this metal/thrash band with a difference, Peep Show is an ideal platform for their confounding yet delightful genre melding style.
And just as the band in the Peep Show try to stylistically bring a fresh take to their genre, their marking team have been a little more innovative for their part. Gut Records decided to give the single an ‘internet pre-release' making it an downloadable at sikth.com, complete with art work at an affordable price. While it may seem like a gimmick, it's a sign of a label taking a band seriously. Breaking the current UK singles market with a single from any group, never mind a rock act is a tough business. Even the rosiest cheeked boy bands struggle to keep their heads above water. But is Peep Show worth the extra effort the company has put into it ?
The answer is a resounding ‘yes'. If Peep Show is an example of what
Sikth can do, Gut had better take them seriously because they're destined for big things. In the music press, descriptions of them have been a wild mix of Finch, Faith No More and the Lost Prophets.
But that doesn't really put a handle on
Sikth, they have a fresh take on their genre and it's a great sound. A little wild, but great.
The London based six piece band acknowledge that some of their music could be classed as extreme, but it's so musical in Peep Show it works. Guitarist Dan Weller admits, ‘We play extreme music, sure, but only in the sense that we go to all extremes. If something sounds good, then we'll do it, and that includes beautiful melodic music. ‘ Peep Show is an excellent example of this philosophy, and musically the track holds a mirror up to Weller's words.
You get the best of both worlds here and a ‘melodious cacophony ‘ might be the ideal way to describe Peep Show.
It ranges from a hard hitting chorus of guitars in the opening, weaving inspired rock guitar patterns and pounding riffs, to the slow almost acoustic interludes, then back to driving guitars. It's bound together by the vocal talent of lead singer Justin Hill, his range straddling the melodic and thrash parts of the song with style. His beautiful yearning vocal in the interludes becomes a powerful rock scream of discontent without a hitch. The chorus is a multi-layered treat, as Hill's voice is skillfully woven with the pounding riffs and the ethereal howl of a distorted guitar.
It's this counter point between the metal and the melody that makes Peep Show, the skillful and seamless transforming from one into the other that gives it it's energy and depth.
Peep Show is said to be one of the bands most accessible tracks, and this no doubt motivated its choice for release as a single.
It's a good balance, with just enough stylish craziness to stand out and a high level of playing to draw main stream fans in.
Peep Show combines high energy with skillful and evocative playing, making for a track that just sounds better and better the more you listen. The genre melding London band are going places, and after being exposed to countless acts with a ‘new twist' that disappointed, every rock fan should take a peep at Sikth.
4/5 Stars
Record label : Gut Records
Release date : Out Now ( and available for download at [url]www.sikth.com[/url])
Written by Sam Bandah
