We Close Our Eyes

Review by Andy Malcom - Collective Zine

This is mighty fine for a demo. All the more shocking is that this band comes from Norwich. Not in a million years would I ever expect a band from Norwich to play screamo this well. I would expect them to be a boring metal band that screams, or sound like Thursday and pretend they are screamo. Instead, WCOE plays noisy hardcore that does retain a bit of a metal edge, but luckily they’ve taken a big ole file to it to round it off a bit, and make it a little more palatable for my ears, like that band the Quest for Quintana Roo. Amidst the more thundering riffs they sprinkle in some melodic guitar and a good crossover of harsh screamed vocals and more shouty/talky ones. “Day Trips to Alkatraz” has an awesome twinkly breakdown in it for example. “Your Life At Twice The Price” is totally frantic and spazz. They finish on their best track “Second Hand Oppression” which is a total epic – it builds up into a spiralling emo finale, has breakdowns and quiet bits and just everything. Absolutely awesome.

At other times this CD reminds me of the earlier Saetia stuff, with a more chaotic urge at times that can bring to mind Orchid. Obviously, it’s totally unfair to a band that is putting out a demo to be compared to those two bands, but hey. There is an awesome instrumental right in the middle – loved that. And things are rounded off by the excellent packaging,

Also, must mention that some of the guys in this band are also in another Norwich band called Long Live who are even better than this lot (they sound like kind of a cross between stuff like Slint and Giants Chair and the melodic parts of Saetia – no screamin’). Talented folks.

Oh! One song has hand claps! That seals it!

Demo 2002