The Aftermath - Friendlier Up Here

Live Transmission Records

The Aftermath want you to like them. After notching several Top 20 hits and gigging relentlessly, their debut album demands your adulation. All the hits are crammed in early to whet the appetite and the stomping ‘All I Want Is For You To Be Happy’ seems to summarise their raison d’être. The record hurtles along in a dizzying myriad of styles but is gratifyingly stuffed full of good tunes. The album’s second half, however, contains the real musical intrigue. The band seems to chill out and allow Johnny Cronin’s wonderfully weathered voice to dictate. ‘Overlooking Paris’ aches with longing, whilst the majestic ‘Song Of A Graveyard’ (aided by the Waterboy’s Steve Wickham on violin) sounds like the Bad Seeds on top form. John Freeman

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DOWNLOAD: ‘JOYFUL MASTERY’, ‘SONG OF A GRAVEYARD’, ‘ALL I WANT IS FOR YOU TO BE HAPPY’.
FOR FANS OF: PREFAB SPROUT, DAVID BOWIE, NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS.

Issue #52 - Very Bro-some

Featuring Panama Kings, ASIWYFA, an investigation into DIY touring, details of what over 25 of the finest NI bands are up to in 2009 and much more.