Ollie and The Wallies are one of the many young bands that Milton Keynes has to offer, but it’s not all about theusual clichés of music when it comes to their material. You may have your punk, metal or ska bands going around, but these guys tend to think inside a different box. At the average age of 16 and a Pitz headline gig ahead of them, the future is looking bright. Thier latest Ep, “All Bad News” gives us a look at the how these guys are getting on and what exactly defines their sound.
“Ready* Aim* Fire” is the opener of the Ep, and a few of you may know of it already, appearing on the Pitz CD as a live track from the band. Rapid drums from Lewis and Ollies sharp chords introduce this number. The main melody has a simple chord structure that’s quite catchy. The strongpoint of the tune has to be the chorus though, going into a slightly heavier style with an infectious vocal delivery from Lewis. Early on, there are a few points where the track seems a bit weak compared to the live version, but the strength and confidence does build as the track goes on. A pacy bassline gets the beat going “Save Me From This”, a bit slower but has a harder beat in some areas. The driving foce of the track seems to be galloping drums prominent verse, that said the track is quite balanced with little bits here and there such as that pounding bass after the chorus and vocal harmonies that give the song a full sound. Even with the mixing, everything seems to be more-or-less balanced for the chorus and wild break, but some parts like the early verses could do with a bit of a boost on the bass to give the track a little more prescence.
“I Need Help” is the brightest tune on the Ep, bright chords instantly giving an optimistic feel. Despite the somewhat negative lyrics from Lewis, the whole song has a very light approach, a simple light beat and chords take the verse while sustained lead forms the chorus. The first break cranks things up a little, going into a solo with a slightly heavier beat without going against the soft grain of the main melody. A final break takes the tone down and makes for a light finish. It’s another track that proves that you don’t need to try to go overboard to make a decent tune.”All Bad News”, however, is the closest to punk these guys get to, a choppy beat driven by the bass and drums mixes with some hard overdriven chords making for a heavier sound compared to the rest of the Ep. The chorus has a nice drive that adds a sharp element along with Ollie’s short solo seems to give an injection of the old-school into the mix before the last chorus builds up before the end. At some points the track does seem to remind me of Ash, Lewis does tend to sound a bit like Tim Wheeler, plus the combination of heavier punk with hooky pop seems to go just as well.
The CD is quite refreshing to hear, there’s no distortion or wizardry that makes a big prescence, what you have here is a band with a clean sound with tunes that are simple and catchy, perfect for the upcoming summer. The band certainly have quite a retro sound to them aswell with, throw yourself back to the era with the mods and you could draw comparisons to the Rolling Stones or The Hives, this certainly isn’t a bad thing. If your quite open minded to how you like your music and need something to wind down to, this is probably just what you’re after.
Craig \m/
