Threatmantics - Upbeat Love Album Review

Review of Threatmantics album 'Upbeat Love'.

Without being too stereotypical it is fair to say that a band with names like Heddwyn Davies, Ceri Mitchell and Huw Davies must surely come from the valleys of Wales. From the Southern side of Wales in the midst of Cardiff, Threatmantics are emerging through with the release of 'Upbeat Love' a sort of well mini album. Eight tracks that counts as a mini album, doesn't it? Well it started out as demo that lead into EP and has finished out as a mini album, they might as well of held back a bit and made a full length album.

This welsh trio do not fall into the typical run of the mill 'Indie Rock' category as so many bands seem to do now. They actually do have a sense of trying thing out, which in most cases is good in others not so. For these though the positives certainly out weigh the negatives.

Threatmantics are certainly not afraid to play there instruments in anger, and 'Big Man' only backs that up with a cool continuous guitar riff, moulded together with a go mental chorus that you can only imagine the crowed at gigs will just go mental for.

Maybe it's the fact that these guys use a viola as well as the normal instrument that your typical Indie band uses that makes Threatmantics stand out, which when the band play those twenty second instrumentals just give a certain unique sound. 'Don't Care' is a great. .well it's a great novelty tune, Heddwyn and co slide back to their routes and slip in a bit of the Welsh language in with it. When you first hear it, it is like did I really hear that correct and you have o listen to it at least another three or four times. 'Don't Care' is something you would expect Chris Moyles to spot and just non stop keep playing the welsh parts on Radio One, which no doubt the band would love if he did. At the end of the day that would be great free publicity.

At times through the album although Threatmantics have there own sound they seem to be a little bit limited in their sound and could maybe do with another band member, just to mix it up a bit. That is probably why 'Upbeat Love' is a mini album rather than a full length album. They just something else to mix it up a bit with the viola.

Not a bad start for Threatmantics, and just as a matter of interest the band are all geezers and Ceri Mitchell is a guy not a girl, as some people believe.


7/10

Mark Moore