Pinkish Hue
F’tang
Black Wire Records, 2013
F’tang are a Sydney based instrumental outfit who’ve been active and gigging around for a few years now. Earlier last month they launched their EP, Pinkish Hue, with a packed show at Black Wire Records on Parramatta Road.
I’ve seen these guys a few times before and their live show is something to behold. The interplay between guitarists, Dan Hollins, James Hulahan and Max Edgar, is phenomenal, calling on a broad range of musical talent. While the powerful driving rhythm section of Tom Houlahan (drums) and Nathan Ashmore (bass) glues everything together to culminate in a cataclysmic build that is a hallmark of their live show.
This is why I was so pleasantly surprised to observe such subtly and restraint in the production, when I got home and listened to the EP. The choice to tone back a lot of the fuzz from the guitars really allows the true complexity of their melodies to shine through and underpins everything with a certain dissonance.
They open very strong with “Black Holes In The Midwest”, really utilising the three guitarists. But I feel like the EP really hits its stride with the last two tracks, “Goodbye Blue Monday” and “On A Thousand Mattresses From Here To Greenland”. Its these two tracks that capture my imagination with clear, strong melodies and careful layering. I’m left in awe by the end.
