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Red Bee – Chokehold – Single Review

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Red Bee
Chokehold
Independent
Release Date: Out Now
Review by Rod Whitfield

I generally don’t review singles, but since it was new music from Sydney’s awesome Red Bee, an exception had to be made. Their debut album of a couple of years back, Ictus, was an absolute rip-snorter, and I have been very keen to hear more from this unique heavy act.

Their sound is indeed unique, it is a progressive form of rock, but it’s tougher and more rugged than most prog rock and metal. The music is complicated and off kilter, the musicianship is of a very high quality, and it all has a feeling of controlled chaos. At the same time, there is a rough and ready, almost punky aesthetic to their sound. This is prog music that you can get completely shit-faced and fall down to.

The two tracks on this single release carry on from where Ictus left off. The title track is a sinewy, discordant beast of a tune that smacks you around the room, while I, Alone (no, it’s not a cover of the band Live) is deceptive with its quieter, more melodic intro, before exploding into almost thrash metal territory. Both tracks take you on a dynamic, neck-snapping sonic journey in only around four minutes each. No mean feat.

Apparently this recording features no sound replacing, auto-tune or any of that type of studio enhancement whatsoever. This is highly admirable, and they’ve obviously put the time and effort into still making this recording sound huge without resorting to studio trickery. Maybe the drums especially are lacking a little definition as a result, but overall it still sounds excellent.

This band rips an audience a new one in a live setting too. This two track single is a very tasty taster of what will hopefully be a new full lengther later this year. Check this band out, if you haven’t already, in both live and recorded formats, they will not disappoint.

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