MP3: Apollo Up! - Chariots Of Fire

Apollo Up!'s new album, Chariots Of Fire, is one of the best albums i've been sent by a label for ages now. A three piece from Nashville, they're signed to Nashville's own Theory 8 Records and this is their second full-length release. The band peddle a quite energetic and intricate blend of post-hardcore (at the more melodic end of the spectrum - think Jawbox rather than Fugazi) with some post-punk rhythms (think Futureheads) tied together with some great Constantines/Hot Water Music-alike vocals. The album came out a few weeks ago and is well worth a listen. With most of the bands playing this sort of post-punk influenced music, I usually find myself getting quite bored after three or four tracks, because although the bands can replicate the basic sounds or feeling of Gang Of Four or Wire, a lot of them seem to fall down when it comes to melody or in general songwriting skill. Luckily Apollo Up! manage to keep the momentum going for all of Chariots, and its nice to see that 2 years into the nu-post-punk movement, a band can still sound exciting playing these sort of songs. Here are a few tracks for you to taste/ear test, hope you like them. For more info you can check out the band's official site or their myspace.

Apollo Up! - Walking The Plank - MP3 2.60mb
Apollo Up! - No Song - MP3 2.13mb