Although there is nothing remotely secret, subtle, or understated, about this band, their name does hint at one thing that could define this London four piece, the ‘cinema’. They describe their live gigs as modern ‘silent cinema’ experiences, a mix of sound and video/still images. From listening to their EP, it’s not hard to imagine what their gigs could be like, as the songs all have a ‘soundtrack’ feel to them, and would work well with message laden footage.

But I’m not reviewing a gig, I’m here to comment on the EP, which comprises three experimental rock tracks, which use a violin in place of a bass, various electronic sounds, and homemade instruments. They kick of their EP with ‘Imagination Is As Good As A Friend’, a track with quite a raw, slightly eerie, folk tinged sound. This is followed by ‘Glue’, a quite industrial sounding track, with an overlong intro, quite punchy/forceful beats, and a heavy focus on electronica music. They end the EP with ‘Official Neck For The Rope’, which heads down the road of stomping, power indie, with a smattering of quite heavy/fast punk, and an unusual start/finish. All in all, these three tracks would serve as a good introduction to the ‘sound’ of the Secret Cinema Band, and showcase their influences well; there’s just one major flaw: Although the vocal is quite atmospheric, and matches the dark mood of each of the tracks, it’s not delivering all the words clearly. So whilst I understand this bands musical direction, after several listens, I’m none the wiser as to what the songs are about. It’s almost, but not quite a finished product, though it does stand out from the crowd for being different.  Head on over to their Myspace page with an open mind, and see what you think, you might just like it.

Visit The Secret Cinema Band online at www.myspace.com/secretcinemaband.