Toxic Waste Monkeys - Melting Pot, Tues 19 December, Newton Abbot
Five years into their career, and yet just 16 and 17 years old. No mean feat. Their music and playing style reflect the years of practice and development. A track like Woodstock shows their layers of musicianship, and confidence. Alex Lane on drums continually lays down a solid and, as required, varied foundation. James Stephens on bass works in some elaborate riffs, and together you could imagine this is a rhythm section of 10 or more years’ standing. Matt Lane completes the 3-piece, combining chunky rhythm and shreaking lead to great effect. Matt and James share the vocal duties.
As to style, you can hear classic rock, ska, punk metal, and any number of variations on these styles. The booming rhythm section and strident guitar will always work for me when done this well. Stand out tracks for me are Rubix Cube, Woodstock and One of a Kind.
In all cases, this is solid music and it blew some thick and fresh air around the Melting Pot studio session. One slight improvement could be made by the addition of Amy Lee or Bruce Dickinson on vocals. Nonetheless, lots of ‘big name’ bands will soon be looking over the shoulder as Toxic Waste shreds a stage or two on their way to a much greater following.
Check out these little monkeys at the Melting Pot on the downloads page, for some full-frontal streaming.
Posted by Big B
December 21st, 2006
