With their influences resting closer to an American Midwest emo band rather than a traditional Australian indie rock act, Ceres’ Selfish Prick EP offer a neat little package of four stylistically different tracks; a wide arrange of instruments including banjos and synths, along with a few subtle influences coming from post-hardcore, folk and electronica in order to create an expertly constructed and gripping release, rich in songwriting talent.
Constructed with the lyrics of your typical angsty 20-something-year-old man, each track is uniquely constructed when compared to the others, leaving them all to stand out in their own right. The tracks range in emotion from the happy-sounding-yet-slightly-spiteful title track, Selfish Prick, the aggressive rock driven Clockwork, to the anxious folk-influenced banjo plucks of Woodwork.
However if one track on the EP stands out, it would be its climatic, emotionally crushing finish, Will You Feel It When I Leave You, tailored with a densely layered and beautifully produced soundscape both rich in texture and gripping in its intimacy. Glitchy vocal samples haunt the electronic drum beats, thumping synthesised bass and its airy guitar riffs as the vocals range from emotive calls to restrained howls. The song flutters with emotion as it crawls towards an absolute crescendo and shutting off with a final whisper of “Will you feel it when I leave you?” a cutting dramatic effect and the perfect, if unexpected end to an emotionally powerful EP.
Selfish Prick shows as an EP that Ceres know good songwriting is just as much about creating an impact as it is about musical talent, and the EP is a rich combination of both. Not a single moment of Selfish Prick feels like the release was rushed, and all indicators say if they can release a full-length with a range of tracks that complement each other in their diversities as they have here, Ceres are certain to create a lasting impression on the Australian and hopefully international music scene.
BY THOMAS BRAND
