Posted on: April 27, 2009 Posted by: anfnewsacct Comments: 0

Man, what is up with Wisconsin and tight emo bands? Bosio’s disc starts out with shrill, incredible guitar riffs, and the track “Bullet Holes the Size of Matzah Balls” shows a band that is mature in their arrangement and cohesive in their sound. The incredible production heard on this disc, especially manifest in the clearly-clanging high hats, really allows the band to shine without having to hide behind heavy distortion. The multiple-part harmony that comes into play during the mid-point of this disc provides a nice dichotomy to the silken-smooth vocals that predominate during the track. The bridge, even if having to resort to what is a largely cliché move (the almost-spoken-out vocals specifically), the re-investment of the solo-heavy guitars into the track really salvages the disc’s momentum. Finishing up the track with an even more intense sound, Bosio seems to be positioning themselves to be the next Yellowcard.

“More than a Mile a Minute” is a much more low-key track than Bosio’s bombastic opening, but that does not mean that the band feels that they can rest on their laurels. Quite the opposite, as the same nuanced guitar lines soar above the track like an eagle as the vocals and rhythm guitars fight it out on the ground. Again, something that immediately will strike a listener to Bosio is their ability to stop and immediately set out in another direction, without removing themselves from the context of “Nice Things”. “More than a Mile a Minute” feels just as good listening to it rolling down the road as it would during the last minutes of a prom. The disc may only be a total of eleven minutes, but the damage that Bosio has done to the complacency of the emo scene has already been done, and the stakes have been raised immensely.

The only problem I could foresee would be if Bosio shot their emotional and creative load with this EP, much like The Chemistry did with their pre-release EP. A large problem that faces the average “emo” band is the ability to wow on specific tracks and completely disappoint on the tracks between these virtuosic songs. Nothing on “Nice Things” would make me believe that Bosio is going to fall into the same pit that bands like A Static Lullaby and The Chemistry have fallen into in the last year. Pick up this disc and keep hitting up their websites for new tracks, as Wisconsin shows up how to rock yet again.

Top Track: Bullet Holes the Size of Matzah Balls

Rating: 7.4/10

Bosio – This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things / 2005 Self-Released / 3 Tracks /http://www.simplybosio.com / [email protected] / Reviewed 27 April 2005

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