Do you ever feel like you are the start of something potentially really special? That’s what we have here. The Gower brothers; two thirds of the on-extended-hiatus Cog, have picked themselves up, dusted themselves off after more than a decade in that alternative rock institution, recruited a couple of ridiculously talented players (including Leigh Davies from Melbourne’s sadly departed Sleep Parade), and formed a new band called The Occupants. And damn, if it doesn’t show as much promise as Cog did in their early days.
They’ve periodically released three standalone songs over the last year and a half or so, added a fourth track now (Hindsight), and have finally released them as a complete EP. With Flynn Gower’s voice, and their general songwriting style, obviously this band brings back to mind the music of Cog in a very vivid manner. But at the same time, this band is no Cog-minus-one-member band; it’s truly an entity unto itself.
The four tracks are highly varied, electronically augmented progressive/alternative rock songs, from the propulsive momentum of the very groovy, industrial-sounding I’ve Been Thinking, to the more twisty-turny, horns and piano-enhanced title track, to the quieter, more ambient and reflective but ultimately grandiose Streets, to the highly dynamic, banjo infused Wonderland. Fans of Cog, Australian alternative music and powerful progressive rock music in general should be slavering with excitement right now. The brothers of Cog were never going to go away altogether, and although they’re doing things very much at their own pace, the first signs displayed on this EP are seriously showing the potential for more greatness.
BY ROD WHITFIELD
Best Track: I’ve Been Thinking
If You Like These, You’ll Like This: COG, SLEEP PARADE, DEAD LETTER CIRCUS
In A Word: Seminal
