January 2007 Music Reviews

Kathematics

Add It Up

Band Members

Kath - Vox, Guitar
Lee - Roy - Bass /Vox
Danny - Drums

Though the intro on "The Kathematics" latest disc "Add It Up" scared the shit out me because my speakers were turned up way too loud - it was definitely to their benefit, I instantly became "all ears" as they say.

I must admit I have a bit of a guilty pleasure when it comes to taking a liking to pop-punk bands, and The Kathematics are no exception. Afterall, a little head bobbing, and toetapping never hurt anyone.

Now don't get me wrong, though I do enjoy music such as this, it's not something that I could listen to every day. In my opinion, it needs to be downed in doses as pop-punk tends to get old fast: it's highly repetative and there's really only so many times one can tolerate listening to the same drumbeat for every track on an album.

Though the music of The Kathematics is catchy as ever, I'd argue it's not overly original. With the vocals mimicking the typical fake Greenday punk accent, and every song ending essentially in the same abrupt manner, The Kathematics failed to accomplish what every band should strive to do: create an original identifiable sound.

However in their defense, I am slightly in question of their motives for forming their band. Are they in it for the long haul or rather just to write one chart-topping hit that will attain them success based on its "fluff" appeal rather than its artistic merit? Who knows?

With their use of Blink 182 style humour which is evident in the titling of their songs, "Laundry Day" & "Alyson Hannigan" along with their lyrical content, it's difficult to decipher whether or not this band wants to be taken seriously.

Irrespective of this, their disc was enjoyable for the most part with the exception of "Don't Ever Rain Now" which I found painful to listen to. The vocals (it remains unconfirmed whether this was intentional or not) were extremely out of tune, and whinny especially when Lead singer Kath attempted to sustain notes for longer periods of time. For future reference, I recommend that The Kathematics stick to what their good at - keeping it up tempo.

Another weak point on this album was their cover of The Chiffons "One Fine Day". It just didn't do it for me at all. When it comes to cover tunes, I truly believe that a band should only perform someone else's material if they a) can improve upon an already great piece of art and b)make it their own. In this case, I don't feel either of those goals were accomplished- not to say that "One Fine Day" was immaculate to begin with, but that's a-whole-nother subject in itself.

Though The Kathematics aren't writing anything that's likely to start a revolution, their music is still cute, upbeat, and definitely appealing to a wide market.

I hope to hear more material from them in the future - perhaps with a bit more guitar and vocal variation.

But for now, if you like your fix of pop-punk every now and again like me, I recommend that you check them out.

Kathematics Links

Kathematics on MySpace

Official Website

Reviewed by Rose Perry of HER Records & Anti-Hero

Copyright © 2007 The Cover Zone