A few years ago Apologies, I Have None released their debut album, London. I was quite the fan - so much so, I picked it as my album of the year. Three and a half years later, I'm still a fan, although I don't listen to it quite as much as I used to - I know the songs very well. After that album, it felt like the band slipped on the momentum they'd built up. I remember a few line-up changes and a shows that all felt very different. I've increasingly realised that AIHN are something of a chameleon band - whatever bill they're on they'll sound like the bands they're playing with - whether it's punk with Calvinball and ONSIND, or metalcore with Pianos Become the Teeth.
Having seen them on that second bill above, with Pianos Become the Teeth and Touche Amore, it wasn't too much of a surprise to hear AIHN go dark and heavy on their follow-up EP, Black Everything. The opening track, Raging Through the Thick and Heavy Darkness of a Bloodlust, is brilliantly heavy and sounds nothing like London, a comment I mean in the best possible way. It wasn't what I'd come to expect from the band, but I enjoyed it. The chorus is pure sludge. With a title like that, there was no way the song couldn't sound the way it does. The only problem was that it was the only song that sounded that way. The other three songs couldn't stand up to the beast that is ...Bloodlust - Two Bombs in a Box in particular always pains me as a way to follow on; the intro feels strangely triumphant (given the previous song) and grates a little. It's also something that came across live for a while - I remember seeing them at the Dead Punk All-Dayer and the first song sounding very different to the rest. It's settled these days, especially with their new album. The other two songs are both fine.
I was very excited to get the new EP, having enjoyed the album so much, and ordered a copy to pick up from Banquet. The artwork - or lack thereof - is nothing to get excited about but the 12" is one-sided with lyrics printed on the reverse - the only place where there are any words at all other than the sticker on the sleeve. It certainly fits the theme of the EP. The internet tells me that it was supposed to be black lettering but a mistake mean it ended up being bright white, which is a hilarious mistake all considering.
Format: One-sided 12"
Tracks: 5
Cost: £9 new
Bought: Banquet Records
When: 24/05/14
Colour: Black
Etching: Screen-printed lyrics
mp3s: Download code
