
Though their name my contradict the fact, Epic45 are far more concerned with the quieter things in life, occupying a peculiarly English sense of desolation as achieved by Hood. On an almost wholly instrumental album, the group begin with delicate, pastoral guitar figures before progressing towards electro-ambience. Somewhere in between they even manage a Bark Psychosis post-rock pastiche with the immaculate 'Low Tide' and on 'August Passed Away Unnoticed' a minimalist piano track that Mark Hollis would be proud of. The Hood comparisons are inescapable in more ways than one; there's the cover depicting English country landscapes and those awkward song titles: 'Like A Crowbar, Humour Separated Us' and 'A Forlorn Reminders Of Better Days'. Yet 'Reckless Engineers' uses their influences so well that these tracks are more than just pale imitations. At a time when the post-rock fraternity are following the "bigger is better" ethos, Epic45 is the underdog that proves, in this case, less is definitely more.