Don’t let the banal band name fool you, William are about as exciting as a faux-punk hipster three-piece are likely to get. Not that that’s much in the way of high praise, but William could have been so much worse (I’m thinking mainly of Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco when I say this); in fact they’re all rather skilled players.
These Coventry rockers have honed a sound that is part Pavement, part Placebo part The Replacements, part Craig Nichols from The Vines (an odd concoction, I realise). From the angular guitars of opener ‘Five Minute Wonder’ with its androgynous falsetto yelps and pounding, confident rhythm playing, William create the impression of a young, up-and-coming indie punk band that would be a live revelation.

The quality of the audio here is decidedly Guided-By-Voices style lo-fi, but it fits the band’s naturally unrefined sound (pop production just wouldn’t have been right here). Famous fans already include John Kennedy and Steve Harris of XFM, as well as Zane Lowe of Radio One. Guitar lines on such tracks as ‘Porcio Dio vs Schweinehund’ and ‘Thomowski’ are often based around a repetitive hook, but also change key unexpectedly as the rhythm section goes off on an equally unpredictable tangent. The overall effect is one of organised chaos, all kept in melodic check by the expansive range of lead singer Gavin’s passionate vocals – which sound great either as a primal scream (on track ‘Zhero’ in particular) or as a more laidback, emotive croon. It’s often anyone’s guess what exactly is being sung about here, but again, it all just works somehow.

By Ryan Daff

Release Date: 07/07/08
Label: Tough Love
www.myspace.com/williamtheband

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