Wales has long been an area bringing great bands into the world of rock in the last 15 years with bands going all the way from Funeral For A Friend to Bullet For My Valentine, so can The Decoy add themselves to this list? If previous output is to be believed the surely will be with previous EP Parasites being championed by people such as Kerrang and by being handpicked to play ynot fest alongside Sikth, Arcane Roots and Neck Deep the future is looking bright for these boys. But is the music up to it this time around?
Definitely. First track Black Mountain Radio opens with a weird static-like sound before launching into the musical assault that is the verse. Reminding the listener a lot of Rueben, there is so much going on, so many different riffs and over the top of all the madness you are given a vocal melody that is weirdly catchy and leaves you questioning how on earth he managed to put a melody like that over the insanity that is the instrumental background. The chorus of this track is also catchy as hell, providing singalongs aplenty.
Second track Cold follows on from this albeit slightly heavier with the verse creating a very stop/start like chaotic feeling before a massive chorus comes out of nowhere. What is most impressive is how many genres seem to be covered whilst all sounding like it belongs together with this song featuring elements of metal, alt rock and fuzzy guitars all meshed into one very interesting song.
Despite this, the band show that they can focus there sound to great effect also on the track Crazy Nights. The sound of this song is much more focused on the alt rock and uplifting part of their sound, a more Biffy Clyro styled track than the rest of the album. What we have here is a great rock song with a massive chorus and good use of build up to elevate the song and a more emotional delivery, a truly outstanding moment.
Habit combines both elements of their sound with the uplifting alt rock style merged with the complicated and technical timings along with some seriously interesting vocal melodies. What is most interesting however is penultimate track Lion. This track has a lot more of a raw sound and comes across even slightly punk sometimes with lyrics such as “The world is a pyramid scheme” and “Riot when you’re told” but this is combined with a section in the song that sounds like Fall Of Troy smashing their instruments to pieces.
The album closes with the track Live By The Axe which is another track that sums up the sound and talent of the band. The unpredictability and intrigue of the album is summed up greatly here with a very strong ending to the album.
Overall, this album is exceptional. What is most interesting about this is that even after 5 or 6 listens, you will continue to find new things you like about it every time you listen. There is so much going on and so much to digest from the seriously interesting vocal melodies and extremely difficult and intriguing instrumentals that there is so much to keep tabs on. The great thing is, this just gives you a reason to keep it in your CD player and listen again and again.
9/10 – Brilliant songs, brilliant album
highlights – Black Mountain Radio, Crazy Nights