Year Of The Rabbit - Hunted EP

I didn't start listening to Failure until after I heard the first On album, never was really too intrigued by National Skyline, and caught on to the almighty Shiner sometime last year. But, I plan to live and die by the motto "better late than never." That said, I would venture to guess that a fan of anyone of those bands has a lot to rejoice about - the space-rock is back, and, this time, it's got a few tricks up its sleeve! At the core of Year of the Rabbit you have Ken Andrews, a pioneering force with the ability to write a song that kicks you in the chest and kiss you on the face at the same time. Then rounding out the sound are guitarist Jeff Garber of National Skyline, bassist Solomon Snyder and a god on the drums, Tim Dow of the late, great Shiner. Believe me, if none of that makes you as giddy as a schoolgirl, it should. So, there are the players, let's look at the music. The 4-song EP rings in with the brooding, mid-tempo "Hunted," that slinks along only to crash down with its grand chorus and huge guitars. The set continues on with "Rabbit Hole," a head-bobber with a bouncy, sing-a-long hook and enough charm to put a smile on your face. "Burn," the third in line and the first non-LP track, has some nice rock-n-roll swagger and provides a nice look at what might have followed Failure's Fantastic Planet. Lastly, the Stone Roses cover, "I Wanna Be Adored," is pretty faithful to the original except that it's in Ken Andrews' trademark style. All in all, the Hunted EP succeeds in hinting at what is expected from Year of the Rabbit later this year. However, some critics might simply chalk up Year of the Rabbit as another "super group" of sorts, doing nothing more dumbing down their skills to create their own brand of sleek, expansive rock music. But, hot damn, they're great at it! And besides, there's still much more that has yet to be seen. [www.yearoftherabbit.net]