source	creator	size
organzine	sean organ	n/a

 

 

 

opens up with some serious om action and catches you completely off guard – have we put the right CD on?  is this really miocene? you’d swear you were listening to the new release from some gong/ozric tentacles/oroonies type om riffing festi outfit – warmly throbbing eastern instrumentals that would have gone down rather well at the pongmasters ball last week. 

 

until they reach track three, and we get the first hint of vocals, it could be any one of the better days/ozrics family (sounds like a half decent nodin’s ictus release more than anything actually)  and there is miocene’s problem: where they think they’re being clever and radically different, they’re actually sounding like many bands we’ve seen and heard at free festivals or the poodle lounge at club dog warming the place up before the real sounds of the ullulators or poisoned electrick head. 

 

it’s good to see that miocene aren’t prepared to stick with the already tired formulas of nu-metal and all the ozfest style, corporate kerranged product packaging that goes with it. 

 

now, if they really had the guts to really go right out there like this live then they probably wouldn’t have been so disappointing at the garage the other day: if they could pull all the elements of this EP in alongside their refining the theory sound, there could be something really exciting to miocene – right now it’s not quite enough. 

 

“the harpie and the preacher” is the highlight of the highlight of the 40 minute 5 track EP, it sounds like the restrained, warm, spontaneous intelligence of king crimson via squarepusher or eat static, mixed with some glowing cello, clarinet and french horn to take them into serious ullulators meets bark psychosis territory – now this is more like it, this is exposing the real possiblities. 

 

this is a very brave release.  they finish up with a track called “why metal sucks in 2002” it’s almost a very dark, restrained, brooding almost van der graaf instrumental.  actually this is almost an excellent EP and miocene are bravely threatening to be revolutionary: now lets see them really go out there with this potentially challenging sound and take their following with them, they could really be a band that makes a difference.  The next move is going to be a crucial one, we can’t wait...... nice one, a band brave enough to make mistakes.