It has been a night – or is that day – of rediscovering the joys of the metal genre that exists in the here and now. Things have changed a bit since my last encounter with maximum volume debauchery as GFM - or Gold Frankincense & Myrrh to give them their Sunday name - add a curiously wholesome touch to their EP “Oh, The Horror!”.
Maybe it is the fact that this is a band of three real sisters that makes the difference here although anyone expecting sibling harmonies and precision acoustic confluences will be disappointed as GFM aren’t out to lead the followers of the metal genre down a different path with the requisite power chord riffs being all present and correct as are the bouts of sandpaper vocals and the manic hellfire drumming. Give the people what they want and they will be happy even if the youthful sound of the mall sometimes seems closer to the band than the sound of leather clad, beer fuelled debauchery.
That said, this EP will have a certain appeal for metalheads. Surprises aren’t on the cards, nor would they be expected, yet GFM have notably more in the way of commerciality and melody memorability than most bands can manage and that bodes well for them in the battle for the attention of an audience.
Best song? “Can You Promise Me That This Will Never End”.
The verdict? A promising start for a young band.