Band:	Torche
Album:	Songs For Singles
Style:	Sludge metal, Stoner metal
Release date:	September 2010

01. U.F.O.
02. Lay Low
03. Hideaway
04. Arrowhead
05. Shine On My Old Ways
06. Cast Into Unknown
07. Face The Wall
08. Out Again

Songs For Singles, the latest from Sludgesters Torche blows by in nearly the blink of an eye... Compressed into under 25 minutes we find eight infectious songs with more hooks than a deep sea fishing vessel. Torche are heavy, like other sludge acts, with a tendency to keep the tempos upbeat, but there is a joyful quality to their music that really separates them from the pack. Tracks like "U.F.O." and "Cast Into Unknown" can put a smile on your face... even if you don't want them to.

The human Torches have a tendency to make The Ramones seem long-winded. The first six pack of ditties in Songs For Singles barely crack 12 minutes. Whereas some bands go on and on and on milking a good riff until heaven becomes hell, these guys get to the point and get out fast. The last two songs are slower paced, basically half speed and give the album some length.

While the album might be half over and done between the time you start the car and finish backing out of the driveway, it's fine. It's so infectious you'll be happy to just play it again.

So seeing as the band are really into the whole brevity thing, I think it shouldn't take longer to write (or read) this review than to listen to the album.

In closing... fast, happy music. Crushing riffs. Thundering bass. Pounding drums. Catchy vocals. Hooks. Fun. Yay!