Milestone
Any band who are described as ‘attacking your sense like the warped bastard child of Queens Of The Stoneage loaded up on a vintage batch of whiskey’ sound pretty cool to me, so when we were sent through Medicate The Night, the new EP from South Wales Rock n Rollers Milestone, I was looking forward to what was on offer. Setting themselves apart from the usual metalcore we see coming out of South Wales, Milestone draw influence from the likes of Hendrix, Them Crooked Vultures, The Black Keys, Jack White and the Foo Fighters to offer up a sound which is underpinned by edgy, blues orientated rock. I figured the best way to fully understand the sound was to hit play and see what the EP had on offer.
Opening with Dirty Knees, the EP gets off to a bass heavy start, kicking into a track which is firmly rooted in rock n roll, combining the bass with hammering drums, pounding guitar work and soaring vocal lines. Managing to hark back to the glory days of rock through the style of the track, the guys have managed to take a well-established genre and make it their own, throwing in catchy guitar lines, pounding drums, and enough attitude to make you know that you need to hear more. What I really like about the opening track though is the simplicity of it, deep down there’s a simple rock riff keeping things going, simple blues progression working through things, yet when it’s all combined into the finished mix it becomes something new, something exciting, and something which is going to reignite that love for music that got you into rock in the first place
Shoot Me Down continues this approach nicely, once again thrusting a dirty, rock n roll orientated track upon you and not releasing its grip until the moment the track comes to a close. Even going so far as to add in a funky style riff to fully push the track onwards, this is a track which is impossible to sit still to, the sort of thing that’s going to get venues pumping, people singing along and some serious recognition going for the band. Blame Me takes this approach and pushes it up to a whole new level, once again firmly rooting everything in a blues rock envelope, yet managing to put their own take firmly upon it. Dirty and funky from the word go, there’s not a person out there who will be able to resist the driving guitar lines on offer here, it’s a track which reaches into your inner soul, ignites a passion for rock n roll, and makes you want to get out to a show to see them live as soon as possible – a definite high point on the EP to make sure you check out.
Moving onto title track Medicate The Night the guys manage to once again show off their influences, throwing down for a fast paced, rock orientated track which brings about images of Queens of the Stoneage and Them Crooked Vultures from the word go. This is another serious high point on the EP, and a track which I can see getting some serious recognition, it’s got that feel that it’s going to get fields of people jumping, singing along and begging for more. Leading on to Bless Your Soul, all too soon we reach the conclusion of the EP, finishing with a softer moment of reflection, and a track which is almost a cool down after the hard hitting EP that led up to it. Slower, acoustic and emotional from the word go, the closing moments here are almost a chance to catch your breath, take on board what you’ve heard across the EP, and a moment to wonder how they’re going to follow this on. Picking up the pace to end the track, the closing moments here are ones which set up the next record, make you want to hear more, and let you know that this has been one hell of a journey!
South Wales and Rock n Roll aren’t too things that I tend to associate, but having heard this EP from Milestone that might be about to change. This is an EP which takes blues and rock, melds them together and offers up a sound that is accessible, rock orientated, blues tainted, hard rock – which could well be a whole new genre altogether! Whatever the style, this is an EP which I’m glad I’ve heard, and a band I’ll be looking to check out this year for sure. Highly recommended for sure.
To find out more about Milestone, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Words: Dave Nicholls
Opening with Dirty Knees, the EP gets off to a bass heavy start, kicking into a track which is firmly rooted in rock n roll, combining the bass with hammering drums, pounding guitar work and soaring vocal lines. Managing to hark back to the glory days of rock through the style of the track, the guys have managed to take a well-established genre and make it their own, throwing in catchy guitar lines, pounding drums, and enough attitude to make you know that you need to hear more. What I really like about the opening track though is the simplicity of it, deep down there’s a simple rock riff keeping things going, simple blues progression working through things, yet when it’s all combined into the finished mix it becomes something new, something exciting, and something which is going to reignite that love for music that got you into rock in the first place
Shoot Me Down continues this approach nicely, once again thrusting a dirty, rock n roll orientated track upon you and not releasing its grip until the moment the track comes to a close. Even going so far as to add in a funky style riff to fully push the track onwards, this is a track which is impossible to sit still to, the sort of thing that’s going to get venues pumping, people singing along and some serious recognition going for the band. Blame Me takes this approach and pushes it up to a whole new level, once again firmly rooting everything in a blues rock envelope, yet managing to put their own take firmly upon it. Dirty and funky from the word go, there’s not a person out there who will be able to resist the driving guitar lines on offer here, it’s a track which reaches into your inner soul, ignites a passion for rock n roll, and makes you want to get out to a show to see them live as soon as possible – a definite high point on the EP to make sure you check out.
Moving onto title track Medicate The Night the guys manage to once again show off their influences, throwing down for a fast paced, rock orientated track which brings about images of Queens of the Stoneage and Them Crooked Vultures from the word go. This is another serious high point on the EP, and a track which I can see getting some serious recognition, it’s got that feel that it’s going to get fields of people jumping, singing along and begging for more. Leading on to Bless Your Soul, all too soon we reach the conclusion of the EP, finishing with a softer moment of reflection, and a track which is almost a cool down after the hard hitting EP that led up to it. Slower, acoustic and emotional from the word go, the closing moments here are almost a chance to catch your breath, take on board what you’ve heard across the EP, and a moment to wonder how they’re going to follow this on. Picking up the pace to end the track, the closing moments here are ones which set up the next record, make you want to hear more, and let you know that this has been one hell of a journey!
South Wales and Rock n Roll aren’t too things that I tend to associate, but having heard this EP from Milestone that might be about to change. This is an EP which takes blues and rock, melds them together and offers up a sound that is accessible, rock orientated, blues tainted, hard rock – which could well be a whole new genre altogether! Whatever the style, this is an EP which I’m glad I’ve heard, and a band I’ll be looking to check out this year for sure. Highly recommended for sure.
To find out more about Milestone, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Words: Dave Nicholls