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Reviews
Drowned
In Sound
Attention:
all those punk bands out there who haven’t quite found that
elusive catchy tune, please refer to this 7-track EP from Hitechjet,
because this is absolutely incredible. Powerful, driving and bubbling
with stirring kick-ass melodies it just fills me with so much
excitement listening to it, and maybe an ounce of pride, that
homegrown punk rock can be so darn good! It’s actually verging
on the frustrating that this isn’t being spat out live in
front of me, but then again it shouldn’t be long til it
is. The crackling punchiness of ‘The Score’ demonstrates
their astounding talent through piercing, uplifting harmonies
and a brash rhythm section that’s both raw and powerfully
hard-hitting. But it’s their instantly memorable choruses
that’re the biggest selling point here, building into a
crescendo of Killerest Expression tunefulness that’ll be
terrorising your senses for weeks after. Quite startling really,
when you consider the many US bands milking the kids of their
pocket money without even a sniff of a catchy tune and yet a UK
act like Hitechjet – with more intelligent melodicism than
you can shake a skateboard at – could potentially be their
favourite new band. Taking
their cues from the UK punk scene Hitechjet have been around for
barely a year, yet have honed their talents into a formidable
punk rock outfit. This is the best release I’ve heard in
a very long time. Well, since The Killerest Expression.
Kerrang
KKKK
Homegrown and in touch with their feelings.
As Hannibal from the 'A-Team' used to say with reassuring regularity,
'I love it when a plan comes together'. Not every band doing the
filthy British pub circuit could pull off the as-good-as-it sounds
combination of Wildhearts / Manics-style sleazy rock'n'roll and
this new-fangled emo stuff that everyone's harping on about. This
Uxbridge based five piece, however, have managed it with ease
on what is something of a belting mini-album.
From the high-octane introduction of 'The Score' to the slightly
more restrained 'All This Time', 'If You Take Anything' attacks
every emotion with no sign of remorse before chucking them away
and moving on to the next one. More importantly, it's a cracking
introduction to a new British band. Do yourselves a favour. (BRETT
CALLWOOD)
Big
Cheese (August 2003)
Another
quality release from the ever reliable In At The Deep End Records.
This seven track album demonstrates Hitechjet's ability to produce
post hardcore with a pop punk edge that results in big slng along
choruses to compliment the occasional screams. This mini album
shows enoughpromise to suggest that Hitechjet will be one of the
better British punk style bands for the forseeable future and
it will be interesting to see if they can cement their good work
with a strong full length. 4/5 Paul Hagen
(Hitechjet
also get name in this issue as a band to watch on Punktastic's
article, and in the playlist for the top 20 releases for the summer!)
Dead
Scene
I've heard a lot about Hi
Tech Jet, they are one of the bands people are beginning to buzz
about in various mags and zines, and if this release is anything
to go by, they have one hell of a bright future ahead of them.
They've
been compared to the Senseless Things / Wildhearts / Therapy?
but I think that's going a bit far at present. Those bands have
a lot of history, and some great releases to boot. Don't get me
wrong though, Hi Tech Jet could get there.
This CD is good, it's so good infact that I can't see it coming
out of the CD drawer anytime soon. The production, like on most
IATDE releases, is top class. Nicely layered guitars with a combination
of clean and distorted effects, strong yet emotional vocals and
a tight bass and drum backline.
If there was ever going to be a band that could be the UK's Alkaline
Trio, it's these guys.(DE)
Reason
To Believe #10
Wow..the press release thingie says this band is
influenced by a ton of ace bands , like the Wildhearts, Senseless
Things, Therapy? and early Manics,. But then a review at the bottom
of said press release says they sound like Kids Near Water and
Hundred Reasons so, now what am I meant to think? How can a band
influenced by the Senseless Things sound as crap as those bands,
I wonder? Anyway, enough with the musical semantics. Maybe you
love Kids Near Water and best of luck with that but that's not
the point here. This is definitely the best pop punky rock sort
of thing I've heard in ages. There is a bit of an emo rock sort
of feel to it (back to semantics again.). The songs are really
catchy with some ace hooks and cool vocal melodies. There's nothing
particularly new or original about it but still I really like
it cos it's pretty rocking and the tunes are ace. (CB)
Mass
Movement
Aah - Old In At The Deep End Records releases. I can rely on these
guys to come up with stuff I like, and so far I haven't been disappointed
with any of their releases. This one continues my faith in their
thinking of good music. In a nutshell we are treated to a tuneful
melodic punk rock fusion with great catchy vocals and lyrics,
with the odd bit of screaming now and then for good measure. Again,
not stuff I would normally listen to a lot but this is one that
grabbed my interest and I think it will do the same if you only
give it a try (E. Tubbs)
Riot
77 (Ireland)
London based band formed last year with a strong
musical range, incorporating the likes of Therapy? and Senseless
Things into their already well developed sound. Slickly recorded
like most bands on this label, but somehow it always sounds just
right. You can tell the gut level approach of the band is for
real and it separates itself well from the sludge elsewhere. Seven
songs in twenty-five minutes, keeping it short enough to have
a better impact on novices like myself. The vocals are shared
between three singers and each does a quality job, fulfilling
the task well. The record goes from quieter moments to full on
blazing guitar assaults, always ably coaxed on by some storming
throat muscles.
Collective-Zine
This is quite a fun little mini album(?). It’s
the basic Leeds/Wakefield punk sound that is doing the rounds
at the moment, some screamed back ups, sweet melodies, and rocking
songs. Some great harmonies throughout and the song structures
are pretty inventive, in the same sort of way Milloy took a standard
sound and turned it on its head. Plenty of variations and the
strong vocals carry this cd though. My only little gripe is the
production is a little weak, its just a sound I’ve heard
so often and it just doesn’t pin me back in my chair as
much as say Strike Anywhere or Small Brown Bike. I
really like this and it gets played pretty often when I feel like
cheering myself up a bit and having a jump around.
Suspect
Device #41
7 tracks of good, rocking post hardcore type stuff, i'm liking
it straight away. Us folks in blighty are pretty spoiled by top
bands of all punk rock genres these days, and here's another to
add to the list. These guys sound like they are playing from the
heart, good loud guitars, urgent sounding enthusiastic if that
makes sense? After a few other CD's I've been reviewing this really
hits the spot. Track 4 'Remain and Remind' slows things down a
good bit, but the 'Check Each Side' cranks back up. enough variation
to keep things interesting and all done with a good pinch of melody,
to stuff! (SB)
Ox
(Germany)
Und schon wieder eine schöne Band aus England. Nachdem in
den letzten Monaten diverse Insel-Bands wie FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND,
HUNDRED REASONS, KIDS NEAR WATER oder JERRY BUILT Alarm geschlagen
haben - und zwar mit Recht -, gesellen sich nun HITECHJET hinzu.
Sieben durchweg schöne Songs gibt es auf diesem Debüt
zu hören. Mal
wird hier geschrieen, mal gesungen, mal beides auf einmal. Das
erinnert dann an GRADE oder eben HUNDRED REASONS, was vielleicht
an Produzent John Hannon liegen dürfte, der mit HUNDRED REASONS
schon oft zusammenarbeitete. Rauh und melodisch, hart und melancholisch
kommt das Ganze daher. Eine Band, die man im Auge behalten sollte.
(25:02) (7/10)
Feedback
#74
This
is a hard hitting debut, that while only 25 minutes long, shows
that this band have a lot to offer. This is The Wildhearts with
energy and stacks of enthusiasm, and not only a lead singer but
two of the other guys more than happy to step up to the mike.
This gives the band the opportunity to try different things and
get away with it. There is a punk attitude that pervades what
they are doing but at the same time this is a very melodic outfit
that manages to stay clear of the bubblegum pop punk that seems
to be popular at the moment. Given that they have been together
for only a just over a year this album is quite something. They
have been honing their music onstage and now must be the time
for them to take this record out and get themselves noticed by
the critics. It is music that makes the noggin bounce and the
legs twitch, and surely anything that creates a reaction should
be checked out.
ULEK
If You Take Anything is going to be one of those CDs which stays
in my CD player for the next 2 months because its so damn good.
HiTechJet
have a sound which is instantly likeable. They play solid rock,
with an undeniable energy that many bands these days forget about.
There is a definite Brandtson feel to some of the songs, the bass
sound especially and better still, HiTechJet employ not dual,
but treble vocals to make their melodies sound fantastic. All
This Time is worth a download if you can from somewhere, its my
personal favourite. Fans of Deep Elm material would be pleased
by investing in this EP. So go on... 8/10
Melodick
(France)
Jeune groupe (formé en Février 2002) du Middlesex
UK (ah ça doit être coton pour draguer ça
!) et dont la valeur n’attend pas le nombre des années.
Influencés par les habituels Kids near Water, Hot Water
Music (roger Waters, non ?), ils arrivent à produire une
emo de qualité sur ce 7 titres. Leur démo (d’emo)
avait déjà été remarqué pour
les même raisons qui font que ce mini album est à
écouter : qualité des mélodies (électrifiée
et poppy « 3 am on the internet »), justesse de ce
double chant (souvent tenté, souvent foiré). Même
la ballade en forme de slow de l’été est bien
foutue. On pourra les rapprocher plus près de chez nous
de Second Rate ou des Flying Donuts par certains moments. 4/5
Punktastic
Yet another quality band
on the In At The Deep End roster, Hitechjet are quite rightly
making waves in their native Lodnon and I have a feeling that
it won't be too long before those ripples extend further northward.
A five-piece that owe as much to Hundred Reasons and Therapy as
they do to the likes of Weezer or Grade, Hitechjet have their
own inimitable style which bears reference to a collection of
other bands whilst still maintaining that they have enough in
their own arsenal to carve out a niche in the 'scene'. 'If
You Take Anything' weighs in with seven quality tracks, building
up on the success that their demo received last year. Indeed the
record was even critically acclaimed by ourselves, alongside a
hell of a lot of zines at the back end of last year - it was noticeable
that despite the fact it had 'demo' scribbled on the cd, this
was a band destined for bigger things. 'If You Take Anything'
not only justifies the praise but it literally dumps on it from
a great height. The likes of 'The Score' and 'All This Time' drive
and twist, with the three-vocal attack bringing an extra dimension
to proceedings. The former is a very impressive way to kick things
off as the guitars play off each other in fine style, yet Brian's
vocals crash around with the kind of melody that so many bands
struggle to replicate. Even though it is rough and ready round
the edges (intentionally), Hitechjet manage to be able to recreate
some fantastic singalong parts. '3am On The Internet' sounds great
even if the lyrical subject is a little daft ("schools out
for today, running home I cannot wait to check my inbox again"),
but as their buddies in Jerry-Built showed with 'Near You', being
obvious and at time cliched lyrically does not make a bad song.
'Remain and Remind' slows things down before 'Check Each Side'
hints at the likes of Avail with some melodic hardcore vocals
mixing in with the now obligatory melodies. 'Fed By Infrared'
reminds me of the early Manics material, the guitar riff especially,
but I'm sure this is unintentional. EP closer 'Slowdown' starts
off as feedback squalls and wails all around before mellowing
out in the verses, building up to the inevitable rough-edged harmony
that caresses the chorus. Another little gem discovered by IATDE,
so much so that it's more of a shock if their latest release isn't
a beauty. 'If You Take Anything' is likley to generate even more
good comments from the underground and if the current rate of
progress continues, a future album is going to be one hell of
a record.
Playdead
Zine
Well I guess the list gets longer.
That is the list of
shit hot new British bands that are around at the moment. Hitechjet
are not exactly fighting back the headlines right now but given
the strength of this 7 track mini album, I doubt it can be long
before they are receiving the kind of attention that new bands
like Jerry Built, Eden Maine and Steel Rules Die are currently
stirring up. The single best thing about this resurgence in great
British bands is the single fact that- as this list of bands shows,
their styles are far from generic are can only be linked like
this in terms of their quality. This quality is most definitely
in abundance as this CD makes its way through its first few tracks.
The sound is mixed, containing shreds of hardcore, straight up
rock and the occasional ballad, Hitechjet are thankfully pretty
hard to pin down. So why bother? Songs like 'All this time' and
'Check Each Side' show how instantly effective they can be, whereas
the likes of 'Slowdown' and 'Remain and Remind' prove that they
most definitely have more than one trick up their sleeve. In time
this release will put Hitechjet all the way up there with the
best the UK has to offer,and it won't be a moment too soon. (MB)
Rocksound
These guys have done their homework,
soaking up every production technique in the book from every band
that are proud to call themselves emo. The layers of guitars,
sometimes played cleanly, then cutting in with a dirty grungey
distortion. The nice-but-aching vocals, relating poetic lyrics
with a heart-wrenching execution, while the angst-ridden backing
vocals supply the harmonies. And of course the technically-perfect
drums and bass supply the backbone. It's textbook and I'm damn
sure there's an army of kids out there that would love to stagedive
to this. (Paul Raggity)
Enough
Zine (Germany)
Strange
name, but fortunately the music on this album isn´t hitech at all. But don´t
get me wrong, the sound of this five piece from Uxbridge/UK isn´t old-fashioned
at all. I´d like to call this melodic HC, the modern way. Driving, catchy
and even a little polished sometimes. Some choruses and a capable singing, switching
from singing to screaming and back, make some of the songs pretty good. Especially
the first songs “The score” and “3am on the internet” are
catchy as hell! Sadly, If they´ll be able to keep the high standard, Alkaline
Trio has to have an eye on them. Didn´t Grade split up, because they listened
to this CD, and realized that they had no chance to compete (haha)? (Jan)
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