The Poles: As Above, So Below

These guys are from Asheville, NC, and their record label’s website says they fucking rock, which I guess they do, in a sort of run-of-the-mill, Angry Young Men with Beards type of way. The Poles feature deep, theatrical growling for vocals, dark, heavy guitar work, and lots of bashing on the drums. You know – rock, man.

Their EP is murky and anguished, but not exactly raw; these are all guys who know what they’re doing when they craft a song, and that may be where this whole genre falls down for me. There’s nothing actually chaotic or risky in these recordings, although that’s the mood they’re going for.

The songs are all sort of… tame. The whole thing starts to feel like a put-on. And for a band working in a pop-grunge area, they’re never able to build up a hook; they end up with a set of washed-out, instantly forgettable songs.

– Tom Vale
The Poles (Doubleplusgood Records)