December 17th, 2021 was when the EP Pieces was released by New Jersey band, Panic Lift on Metropolis Records. Panic Lift are currently releasing a series of EPs, five in total and Pieces is the second in this series. James Francis is the frontman of Panic Lift whom have been around since 2006 and his live band is made up of Dan Platt (keyboards), Ben Tourkantonis (drums), Cristian Carver (drums) and Kenzi Burke (bass).
There is something definitely grandiose about the first track, “Disease Of Kings“. An amalgamation of synths, guitar and soaring vocals that feels a little raw, when the world is breaking around them and life has lost its colour and taste.
“Failure Principle”is a track that just instantly catches your attention. The synths just fly at you, exploding into shards of glass, that while pretty, are sharp and reinforces the message that stress without hope becomes a cycle of pain.
The last three tracks are mixes. GenCAB are back with a new album of their own, Thoughts Beyond Words and have remixed “Disease Of Kings” giving it a far more electronic flavour that swirls through your head. It is a given that any song mixed by Assemblage 23 is going to be fairly stellar. Tom Shearer gives “Failure Principle” the treatment and I can see this doing so well on dance floors. Last mix is done by KALCYFR which is a thunderous dubstep and bass beast.
So it is a tight little EP with a great choice in guest mixers. Both songs are little gems and so now we wait to hear the next EP from Panic Lift.
https://paniclift.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/paniclift
https://metropolisrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/MetropolisRecords
https://www.facebook.com/kalcyfr/
Onyx Music Reviews 