British Enter Shikari was the second band ever - the first was - who managed to sell out the prestigious London Astoria venue without even a record deal. With a very good live reputation and a large group of loyal fans, who find each other on the internet, Enter Shikari was able to grow into a hype, without any input from a record company. Their debut album Take To The Skies is released on their
… own label, they produced the CD themselves. This 'do it yourself' mentality suits the music that Enter Shikari makes: post-hardcore or 'screamo'. But with the striking element that these four young Britons mix influences from dance through it. Between the pounding drums, fierce guitar riffs, primal screams and roars dug up from the depths of the lungs and other sound explosions, you suddenly hear thin squeaky synthesizers from the early days of the trance or old school breakbeats. Hype or no hype: Take To The Skies sounds more like a somewhat clichéd hardcore record than a sensation. This will probably require the band to be watched live, and that can be done on the included DVD, which features some of the songs from the Astoria concert. (IV)more
