Ravetank is a lo-fi project based in Bath, England, led by singer-songwriter Nathan Howard.
With a rhythm section that sounds like it could’ve been from a track by Frankie Rose & The Outs but played through The Jesus & Mary Chain’s wall of fuzz and then dragged across the sticky floor of CBGBs – Mid Life Crisis Paul McCartney – Rick’s Version is quite the smorgasbord of influences. We also hear bits of Lightning Bolt, The Mountain Goats, The Velvet Underground, Daniel Johnston, My Bloody Valentine, Belle & Sebastian & David K Frampton.
With the unrelenting drums, down and dirty bass and lo-fi, fuzzed-out guitars all turned up to 11, it’s full speed ahead and everything in the red – this is noise rock at its absolute best. You should also check out the live version from the 2023 live album Echoes From Feedback Mountain if you fancy a real sonic assault.
The b-side – Burrito Babe – Rick’s Version – begins and is a tender lament that is about as far from the first track as you can get. Sounding like an amalgamation of Elliott Smith and early Bright Eyes – these British boys have clearly been inspired by some good shit from across the pond. As the song progresses we get the return of the wall of sound from the first song and we enter into Sonic Youth/Dinosaur Jr territory. The second song culminates in a fantastic outro that comes after a noisy false-finish (with feedback aplenty, naturally) and is ultimately just as thrilling as the first.
Written by Kinda Grizzly
