The Beta Band - Heroes To Zeros
[Regal]

Scenes undoubtedly change within a lengthy period and since The Beta Band's absence, garage hysteria & the Scouse movement in particular have blown out of proportion - the latter which couldn't have surfaced without the initial inclusion of the group's presence.

It seems strange then, how rapidly the media have forgotten their once beloved band, especially when such notables as Radiohead have even toyed through a difficult Beta phase. With such influence on contemporary guitar music, there's never been more truth in suggestions that more accessible rock music is favoured to shift vast printed copies.

Thank the Lord our boys are back, undeterred by current trends - only now they're now the lean, mean chart machine they've been threatening to become for ages. While the nation's favourite guitar bands are more than content with rehashing their parent's vinyl collections, the Beta's have made a futuristic classic of bohemian proportions.

Cohesive, focused, slick; it's hardly the band we've been familiar with for so long, but 'Heroes' is the sound of the band learning from past mistakes & successes to finally form the polished product they've strived for all these years.

Initially it sounds nothing like their previous work. Stripped, utterly contemporary production from the band themselves (why, it was staring them in the face all along) and an urgency to distance themselves from the shuffly acoustic, pastoral past. With the majority of 'Heroes' taking an electronic tip, processed beats replace the plodding drums and we find a more organ & sequenced led route.

On second listen it begins to sound like classic Beta Band, only more subtle - the infectious melody, hypnotic riffs and insanely addictive rhythm sections are as vital as ever. The percussion is still there too only in digital form, not to mention the madcap inventiveness of their past - sampled trains, dog noises and the use of multiple instruments.

Wonderfully precise, confident and straight to the point - no room for clutter in the Beta Camp 2004. Potential single one after another - the next inevitably is 'Out-side', in which every advert, clothes shop & TV programme will use for their backing music.

The band have always wanted to be relevant right now and with 'Heroes' they've finally made it. Their finest recorded material to date, Worldwide commercial success awaits them.