The Bluesbunny - Independent Music Reviews

Hailing from what they call the 'industrial wastelands of Glasgow', 11th Hour have their sights set on rock dressed in black with lots of eye-liner. The black and white cover of an angelic graveyard statue is a fitting introduction. Beginning the CD with "Serenity", a dark tale of dying love complete with lyrics about wilting flowers in Love's garden, 11th Hour hook the listener with down tempo synth underpinned by simple guitar and bass. Strong, clear vocals leave no doubts as to the plot of this gothic conte de l'amour. A canal-side tryst is the subject of the second reel in this film noir festival. Founded on a tom-tom rhythm and brooding guitar, and topped off with nightmarish shimmering sparkles from the keyboard, "Valentines Day" shows the most diverse set of textures of the three tracks on the CD. The third track in this unholy trinity is an instrumental which teleports in from Blakes7, and then attacks like Federation Stormtroopers with guitars. Unfortunately this track never really gets out of the starting block and 1 minute and 32 seconds later, the 4 chord loop that the instrumental consists of fades to black without gaining any ground.

The two songs and half an instrumental on this CD left me strangely unsatisfied - I felt like I'd been given an (un)happy meal, when what I wanted was the full quarter pounder with cheese. Saying that, I did enjoy the two songs.
If you like your music to be mono-chrome with a touch of Edgar Allan Poe style gothic, this is a band to watch for. But do yourself a favour; wait for the main course instead of just the appetizer.