EP REVIEW: The Flashlight – Fake Pollocks

From New York we are introduced to emo duo FAKE POLLOCKS and their debut EP The Flashlight. The duo themselves put out their debut single last year and are now self-releasing their first EP, which is only four tracks long, giving listeners a short but sweet introduction to the band.

As the EP begins with One High Five there is a slight moment of panic where the first minute features a strange, chaotic rhythm where the vocals and instruments don’t blend. Yikes – at this point you might be wondering whether you should keep listening, but fortunately everything goes up from here. The track then switches to sudden distorted shouting where everything becomes more structured and falls more into your standard pop-punk/emo track. And what a relief that is.

As the band move on to Head Sized Diamond, we are greeted with quiet, gentle strumming that then takes form of a catchy beat and becomes a song that easily feels as if it came straight out of the early to mid-00s; in fact it sounds a lot like a song that TAKING BACK SUNDAY would have put out around this time. Furthermore, the way the vocals are styled to sound like a conversation with each other where they’re responding to each other’s thoughts and opinions is really strong.

Fake Blood has a ska vibe to it and has those classic shouty vocals one can expect from your standard emo band, but despite the nature has a calming element to it. And finally, A Busy City Street sees a return to the chaotic structuring that listeners were greeted with in track one, yet this time it has better flow and more of a positive upbeat vibe.

As mentioned, this is a short but sweet EP. Asides from the panic one might experience in track one where you’re left wondering what the hell is going on, The Flashlight is an enjoyable experience overall. Each song takes on its own character and has its own personality; in short, no song sounds the same and the record takes listeners through plenty of different emotions and feelings throughout. This is only their debut EP and it has already provided a strong introduction to FAKE POLLOCKS. We can’t wait to hear more from them in the future.

Rating: 8/10

The Flashlight is set for release on March 31st via self-release.

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