http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAaufj2GAwQ1
Scottish 5 piece rock band Afterlife are Pete McCoy, Al Reilly, Stewart Brown, Steve Reilly and Iain Stratton who formed in early 2011 after too much spare time and the need to get the creative juices flowing. They have been very busy with supporting slots for Bonafide and Nashville Pussy, as well as upcoming festival dates, and the release of their new E.P “Alpha” to the masses.
Opening with the emotive Leonidas speech “This is where they die!” from Zak Snyder’s film “300” based on Frank Miller’s comic of the same name, the band set up a hard act to follow up on their own debut E.P “Alpha”. Luckily they do so with a song fit for a fight going into full blown fantasy with a blitz of Guitar, Bass and Drum while singer Pete McCoy paints the scene of battle for the listener. Full on Rock which lyrically would not sound out of place alongside Iron Maiden’s “The Trooper” or “These Colours Don’t Run”. Afterlife are off to a confident start. “Don’t Come Cryin’ to Me” opens with a brief reprieve from the bombast in the form of a great riff before once again exploding into action again with Iain Stratton picking up the momentum like there was no break while the band dispense the ideals of standing on your own two feet and dealing with decisions made good or bad.
The song “Afterlife” is where guitarists Al Reilly and Stewart Brown really begin to shine, riffing off each other brilliantly and almost taking centre stage here dispensing hard rock, while offering up some perspective on life and what awaits once we’re done here. Next track “Never Fade” is a change in the pace of “Alpha” as instead of the full on rock that we are treated to in the first Three tracks, what is presented is a ballad that slides in neatly with what’s went before. “War Machine” gets us back on track however, with full on Metal riffs and wrecking machine Drums before coming to the final track “Freedom” which given the band’s history could be viewed as a statement to its past and future, as well as a solid bookend to the bands first outing, “We are here to stay/ Because I’m free”.
A solid E.P. and evidence of a group who are just beginning to enjoy themselves. The band has recently completed a set of gigs in Glasgow supporting “Terrorvision” in The Garage and playing the Cathouse and are looking at bigger festival dates on the horizon with “Hard Rock Hell 2012” where they’ll share the stage with the likes of “Testament”, “Ugly Kid Joe” and “The Quireboys” to name a few, then to Scotland’s own Metal festival with “Les Fest 2013” with plenty of room for fun in between.
