Request: As Fast As We Drive - Fast forward to the future (EP)

I'm not only a mean reviewer, I'm also a nice guy so today I'm going to do a little bit of advertising for my friends in As Fast As We Drive. They're a young five-piece from the South-West of France and they're releasing today their first EP after two self-recorded demos.

They've been together since 2003 so the boys had some time to find their sound. Their influences are clear: As Fast As We Drive play an energetic mix of pop-punk riffs, alt-rock melodies with dual vocals and a fair amount of screams. First, I think the compositions are well-thought and have some very enjoyable instrumental parts, whether it be as intros ('Nothing but another problem') or breaks ('The line'). They don't fall into the easiness of alternating heavy parts and cheesy choruses and it really is a good point. They have good musicians and they use them well, as both guitars and drums have the opportunity to express themselves fairly on almost all the songs. 'Nothing but another problem', the best track off the EP in my opinion, has catchy lead vocals, good riffs and an interesting structure. Three of the members contribute vocals, but whereas some of the high-pitched screams and back vocals on this song provide rhythm and consistance, it doesn't work on 'The way you torture me', which features quite annoying yells. I also think they should emphasize their aggressive raw sound and avoid the cliche effects on their singer's voice ('It's always difficult to try to write a song for a friend'). But overall, they reached their goals and the production on a song like 'The way you torture me' is surprisingly good for a band of their stature and they don't miss much to make a hit.

As Fast As We Drive can be proud to claim their band is one of the few to decently represent the French alt-rock scene (for those who knew them, they remind me of Full Screen). Sure, the competition isn't really tough, but their songwriting is above the wide majority of what's actually done in their country. They take me back to this period, a few years ago, where very melodic alternative rock bands that had some screams in their songs were blossoming, but a time when it was actually original and not annoying (Letter Kills, A Static Lullaby,...). I couldn't really tell why, but they have this almost nostalgic fresh feeling. It's only their first release and there's still a lot of work (the lyrics sound quite deja vu and I think they should figure out how to make the vocals sound more focused without losing the dynamics that provide several singers), but the quality of their songs will sure give them the chance to share the stage with some of their influences touring France in the future.

3/5

Recommanded if you like:
LoveHateHero, A Thorn For Every Heart, Halifax
Check also:
Full Screen, Normal Like You, Aphasia

www.myspace.com/asfastwecandrive
(Self-released, 2009)