Album Details

• Artist: Vtg
• EP:
Love Is Letting Go
• Label: 3am Devices
• Year of Release: 2009
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: carlito on 2010-10-28

Fans of alternative electronic rock in the vein of Imogen Heap, IAMX, and Nine Inch Nails will be happy to add yet another band to their stash - VTG.  Their latest EP Love is Letting Go is their second release.  So Beautiful People look away is their first full-length album that was released back in 2005.  That being said, this is my first experience with the band.  First impression - my mind immediately went to INXS.  They just have this electronic retro eighties vibe with a tough edge (definite hallmarks of INXS).

Lead singer Lawrence Stone has the voice of a tortured soul, complete with both whispers and screams that are full of distortion, reverb and delay FX.  The bass rhythms are deep and driving while the drums pound away; the electric guitars are hard as nails - and those are just the traditional instruments.  Besides all of this, there are synths, drum programming mixed with live drums, and a host of other textures.

"You" is my favorite track on the EP.  It certainly is packed with the most energy.  The song fades in with a hi-powered electric guitar riff backed by some synth and drums.  About :45 seconds in (right before the verse starts), this choppy synth bass comes in to hypnotize the listener.  The track is captivating from beginning to end.  Stone will have you yelling back, "Hey! Don't run away!  Hey!  I'm going to eat you alive."

"She Kills Me" has a pretty straightforward melody and rhythm.  It's a bit more subdued and laidback - at least at first glance - and overall is extremely moody.  Some snaps show face to give the snares a little extra umph.  The remaining songs all follow a similar formula: deep, dark, hard-hitting music with vocals that are eerie and haunting - vampiric even.

Love is Letting Go is a nice taste of what VTG is all about.  It's rock, it's alternative, it's electronica, it's industrial, with just the right amount of a throwback eighties vibe - all wrapped up into one neat package.  I definitely recommend checking out their earlier full-length effort as well as the awesome remix version of Love is Letting Go.  Keep a close eye on the band's future projects.   

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