Hold Your Horse Is
Everyone Runs Faster With A Knife EP
1. Christopher Walken (2:48) Free mp3.
2. World Up (3:51)
3. Stranger (3:33)
Produced by Gordon Mills in Weybridge between the 6th and 10th April 2009.
Mastered by James Penny.
Artwork by Robin Pearson.
CD SOLD OUT.
"Hailing from Camberley, Fleet and Brighton Hold Your Horse Is are one of the bands who gain your attention from the opening riff of the opening song, 'Christopher Walken', of their 'Everyone Runs Faster With A Knife' EP. Very much like riffs bands such as Fighting With Wire and At The Drive In would be expected to come up with, not three youngsters from down south. The rest of the song and indeed the rest of the three track EP continue in that same impressive rocking tone. Some real killer riffs being mixed in the full throttle high energy rock. The final track, 'Stranger', has a big Kong-esque feel to it and is equally as good too. Overall, a superb trio of songs that just leaves you wanting more and more of the same. For those in the south east, there are plenty of gig opportunities in the next few months for you to catch Hold Your Horse Is live." 10/13
Neil Richardson @ RoomThirteen
"Hold your horse is a 3 piece group from the depths of Surrey, their name is based on the fantastic album by 2-piece math monsters Hella. 'Everyone Runs Faster With A Knife' is a fantastic little EP showing a small example of the amazing music written by the band. The introduction track 'Christopher Walken' is an angular melodic mish-mash that displays real fast and rough work by the band. This is fantastically emphasised by vocalist Robin's shouty approach to the songs. The band pay real homage to local heroes that fell before them like Reuben and Meet Me In St. Louis. Hold Your Horse Is display great interludes in most of their songs on the EP never quite sticking with a certain aspect in a song and constantly changing and keeping each track very exciting like in 'World Up', a short but sweet little number that shows quite simple techniques making the song quite huge sounding. Great introduction and catchy in all parts. This is also emphasised in the last track 'Stranger', the EP as a whole sounds dirty, rough and beautifully horrible. Great build ups that keep you listening for more."
Mario Gambardella @ Rapture Promotions
"Having already heard a few tracks from this Surrey based band, I was excited to hear the three tracks from their new EP 'Everyone Runs Faster With A Knife'. First tracks 'Christopher Walken' is unbelievably catchy with a brilliant fast paced intro. The guitar and drums work very well together and remind me of early stuff from bands like Franz Ferdinand and Reuben. Throughout the song, the tempo changes often, which keeps it exciting and great to listen to. The lyrics are also brilliant, and great to see along too. This is the sort of song that would sound amazing live, no matter what sort of venue it was played in. Next track 'World Up' allows drummer Chris to really show off his talents, and the excellent drums work well with the slightly softer melody. It's a great tune, without being too repetitive. I especially love the combination of the softer music against the 'raw' sounding vocals. Last track 'Stranger' once again has a fabulous intro, with an amazing riff. The vocals are quite original and allow 'Hold Your Horse Is' to stand out from the crowd. As usual, the lyrics are good and would be great to see along to at any live show. To sum it up, this is a great little EP. Definitely worth a listen if you like fast paced music with insanely catchy tunes. Be sure to check them out at one of their upcoming live shows – they're playing 'Sausagefest 5' on 5th July." 9/10
BlissdelaMess Promotions
"Curious band name and, against everything we learn at school about scissors, nice EP title. And a suitably fine 3-track EP from this spiky three-piece who jerk their guitar riffs around like an epileptic at the Blackpool illuminations. 'Christopher Walken' is a slightly less malevolent number than the one of the same name by The A + E Line, but not by much. There's big elements of the Foo Fighters in the outro (and the Foo Fighters when they were good, not when they got all MOR) and plenty of other pointers to guitar bands like Queens of the Stoneage and Kings of Leon. Rarely does an EP get better as it goes on but this one certainly does, triumphing in the final track 'Stranger' which again, although showing a bit of similarity with the Foo's 'One by One' guitar riff, is a far more threatening racket which will go down well with fans of Everyone to the Anderson."
Shane Blanchard @ Tastyfanzine
"One thing is for certain with this band, they sound like nothing I have ever heard before. With most bands, the focus is generally on the vocals, but with Hold Your Horse Is, you get a refreshing break from that obsession, with each track starting with a brilliant instrumental section, the vocal sections broken up by small interludes of instrumentals and the music really being lead by the instruments as opposed to the vocal line. Not to say the vocals aren't great as well, but you really get a sense for the musicianship of this band, which I think is a great change from the norm, and a hugely refreshing one at that." 4/5
Caz Thomson @ RiotZine
"There's a bit of a Reuben-esque feel to Hold Your Horse Is. Technically they're not really a band that fits under the PT reviewing criteria, but they're interesting enough for a short critique. This three-track EP shows promise. It sounds a bit tinny and it kind of works; opener 'Christopher Walken' sounds pretty good and sets the scene rather nicely. There's a slightly off-kilter tempo throughout and the vocals are distinctly British and delivered in a rather uniquely lazy way. It's a short EP and leaves you wanting a little bit more which is a good thing. Hold Your Horse Is are good but not yet great, but coming from someone not wholly interested in this type of music that's a reasonable compliment." 3/5
Paul Savage @ Punktastic
"This is a rather interesting little demo that got to me just before the deadline. Hold Your Horse Is, is a pop punky type band from Camberley and they give a great account of themselves on this debut demo. Due for release in May, it consists of three pretty lively tracks, with plenty of spirit and delivered with a real 'live' feel about it. Not seen them live yet, but on the strength of this, I definitely want to see them in action, because I don't think that I'll be disappointed."
Neil Duncan @ IssuePunkZine
