Make Do and Mend

I am a huge Hot Water Music fan. I could go on and on about that band, but I won't -- that's not what this blog is about.

It IS about how influential they are, and how many bands that are now sounding a LOT like them, picking up the torch with gruff vocals and catchy melodies.

There have been a lot. Here's just a few:

• Small Brown Bike (though they were around at the same time as HWM, so you can't really say they are following them)
• Lock and Key — who ended as a band last year, which is sad because I think they were at their peak at that point (go download the 3 song demo tracks for FREE at Purevolume and see for yourself)
• Iron Chic, who features Latterman alums Phil Douglas and Brian Crozier as well current members of Small Arms Dealer and The Agent

Then there's Make Do and Mend. They're from Hartford, CT, and I can't really say they're aping HWM's sound... more like taking the passion and the approach, and expanding on it.

I'm checking out their latest EP, "Bodies of Water", and I'm pretty blown away. There's "Shambles", which starts out the EP as kind of a Brand New moody-ish piece, which launches into "Winter Wasteland", which just cements what they guys are doing. The song rocks.

From there, it's more of the same: up-tempo passionate rock that channels "Caution"-era melody and passion.

Look, I'm not good at elaborating about "nuances" and the "guitars buzzing like..." metaphors that rock critics use. I can only tell you that if you like any of the bands I mentioned above, you'll like Make Do and Mend.

— Note: here's a little bonus excerpt from a review I found about "Bodies of Water":

"Confession time. If Make Do and Mend didn’t put this record up on their website for free, I probably wouldn’t have listened to them. The problem lies in the reality that gruff punk is becoming dangerously watered down; everyone claims to be the new Chuck and Chris when in truth it’s your standard punk songs with whisky soaked vocals. Very rarely do the pretenders match the technical rhythms and bitter-sweet lyrics that gained Hot Water Music such a rabid fan base. So why should I spend more money on another clone?

Consider me shamed because whilst the HWM influence is clear, something else is at work. On ‘Bodies of Water’, Make Do and Mend have captured the knack for huge melodies, they have bottled the sadness of a thousand shoe-gazers and they have melded the two into an EP drenched in sincerity, ambition and passion."

Read the rest of the review over at Daily Dischord.

Make Do and Mend links:

Band Website — Myspace — Last.fm