Track Listing > >
Left Behind / Chasing Rainbows / Lakes Of Tears / He Doesn't Know
REIKER RECORDS
HiFlyer are a Bristol four piece, an indie folk/pop outfit who manage to sound like a female fronted lo-fi version of Embrace; attempting sweeping pop theatrics, but for the most part falling some way short.
With their latest release the ANTARCTIKA EP, the band follow up debut album HERE COMES THE SUNSHINE with another handful of tear stained ballads. A song like LEFT BEHIND rides along on its best Coldplay keyboard riffs, chiming U2-esque guitar work and pounding drums - HiFlyer doing their best to sound big, epic and important, attempting windswept stadium rock. HiFlyer are a band though let down by weak songwriting and a lack or urgency or emotion, singer Elle Williams delivers her vocals in an average sounding blues croon, not quite enough to convince you she means it, not enough to endear you to her; just too average and plodding to engage.
Elsewhere here, CHASING RAINBOWS and LAKES OF TEARS are more of the same, songs that fail to leave much of an impression beyond mildy diverting indie balladeering. The more urgent sounding HE DOESN'T KNOW, however finds HiFlyer making a more promising noise, jangly guitars and big bold melodies showing a more invigorated side to the band, a song that fits somewhere between early REM and The Sundays.
HiFlyer unfortunately continue to struggle to convince with the ANTARCTICA EP, still the occasional moments of quality on offer here do at the very least leave you with the feeling that HiFlyer may come good at some point in the near future.
BIOGRAPHY
HiFlyer is the latest young band to emerge from the cutting edge music scene in Bristol. The band consists of songwriters, brother and sister Henry and Elle Williams and two school friends Mike Edwards and Tom Raiff. The prolific band has finished recording their debut album HERE COMES THE SUNSHINE and has already written the second album. HERE COMES THE SUNSHINE was recorded at J&J Studios in Bristol and was engineered by Portishead bass player Jim Barr. The band then mixed the album at Supersonix Studios under the supervision of Tony Hobden. Tony, former engineer of Channel House Studios has worked and engineered bands like Coldplay, Ronnie Sixe, Lupine Howl and Roxy Music.
The amazing vocals of the album, courtesy of Elle Williams, have a unusual story behind them. Luckily for Elle, she ended up with a unique singing voice but at the age of two years she contracted a terrible virus that closed her throat and prevented her from breathing. To save her life a pipe was inserted through her throat and into her lungs to help her breathe. Elle was lucky to escape brain damage due to the restriction of oxygen to her brain but has ended up with her beautiful jazz voice due to the scarring on her vocal chords.
The opening track OPEN UP YOUR HEART features in a short film A Match Made In Heaven being premiered at Cannes next year. With music filled with soft jazzy vocals, warm acoustic guitar chords and mesmerising piano riffs. HiFlyer mixes the melodies of Coldplay and Keane with the influences of Fleetwood Mac and the Rolling Stones. This produces raw piano and keys, hard pumping bass and drums with the stunning female vocals. This band have unmatched enthusiasm woven with moments of absolute intimacy.
LINE UP
Elle Williams
Henry Williams
Mike Edwards
Tom Raiff
DISCOGRAPHY
HERE COMES THE SUNSHINE (Reiker Records>2006)
Open Up Your Heart
Left Behind
Is It Possible
Magical Moments
To Be Me
Carry Me
Get Real
What Would Happen
Loves Confusions
Free As A Bird
What You Want
Light At The End Of The Tunnel
ANTARCTIKA EP (Reiker Records>2007)
Left Behind
Chasing Rainbows
Lakes Of Tears
He Doesn't Know
LINKS
HiFlyer>www.hiflyerofficial.com
FURTHER LISTENING
Sleeper
They Drove Me To It
Belly
Review date: February 2007 |
