Black Wire

Black Wire

(Giant Pecker)

Record Review by Alexis Roberts

You know that annoyingly catchy song by the Kaiser Chiefs, called “I Predict a Riot”? Well, supposedly that song was written about Black Wire after the Kaiser Chiefs witnessed one of their insane live performances. Black Wire is flamboyant indie rock at its best, or worst (depending whether you are into undernourished men parading around in scandalously tight pants and wearing more eyeliner than your 13-year-old sister). Imagine a less sexy version of The Faint with English accents and there you have it: Black Wire in a nut shell.

The fact that these kids are clearly good musicians was the saving grace of this CD, because if they didn’t know how to play their instruments it would have been a total disaster. To say the very least, Black Wire have proven that they know what they are doing music and business-wise. I’m sure that some major label will snatch up this little gem before you can blink your eyes, and I’m sure that is what they had in mind when they decided to play this type of music.

Another peeving item was that they seemed to steal the song title “Smoke and Mirrors” from Salem’s Love It or Leave Me EP. But “Hard To Love (Easy To Lay)” was really what did me in. It was a big disappointment, and it’s like a disease that gets into your brain and has you singing “I’m hard to love! But I’m easy to lay!” out loud while you are in the supermarket, doctor’s office, church, etc.

When musical trends change in another couple years, I would love to get another Black Wire album to hear what they sound like then. The Kaiser Chiefs predicted a riot. I predict a lot of underage girls throwing their training bras as these guys while they ride the current trend’s wave of success.