THE DESCARTES - Reflex Action CD-EP

Every so often in the Dundee Scene, for whatever reason, a band will suddenly make that jump from "good but something missing" to "whoaahhhhh!!! - now this is hot!!" It's now the turn of The Descartes on the evidence of this new EP. They kick in with a tile track that sounds altogether more expressive, expansive, powerful and crtystal clear than anything they've done in recent times, with a vocal that really delivers the goods. Initially there's a swirl of searing lone guitar as the whole band then blasts in, a chiming guitar riffs ascends to the skies then the main rhythm kicks in and suddenly there's a whole canvas of ringing, surging guitars being painted. The vocals come in sounding something akin to the guy out of Electric Six, while the indie structure of the track isn't that far removed either. Only this band exhibit far more invention as the song ascends, then stops, turns and diverts itself down an alley of lead guitar break, before disappearing into the distance. Short, but inventive and the sort of thing you just want to play again, despite the fact that there's no discernible hook. "Ice Nine" is a tad slower, built around a cyclical guitar figure as the band crunch away merrily, this time the angst-ridden lead vocal joined by harmonies as the song starts to rise, before falling back to the lead vocal as the riff and rhythm continue unabated. There's a touch of Electric Six and, to a degree, Funeral For A Friend, in there as the track suddenly explodes and takes off on a race of more urgent sounding arangements, before reverting to its initial pace and pattern. The emotive vocal carries you along for the ride on another track that is curiously hypnotic in a very good way. "Scratching The Surface" strides in on a wave of ringing lead guitar above burst of bass and cymbals before the drums kick in, a second, deeper guitar riff fires up and the whole band then head full pelt into a track where the vocals are altogether more brooding but still powerful as the arrangement gallops away and the verse-as-chorus part of the song provides the contrast from the nerve-jangling central figure of the song. There's an emotionally wrought soul being bared here, while the break in the middle, still with that guitar figure chiming away in your head, leads the song to something faster with more of a My Chemical Romance flavour, as it all heads off into mentally unstable territories before suddenly ending.
Overall, this is the sound of a band finding an identity that fits, a uniquenes that is their own yet a commerciality that is not obvious but is somehow infectious for all that. Every journey starts with a single step - this is three mighty leaps!

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