Reviews

CDBaby.com "And Finally"

"Tunefully abrasive & abrasively tuneful... great hooks, big searing guitars and sweet vocals... one of the finest Irish bands of the last decade."

"...another chance to salivate all over Neal Calderwood's searing guitars & Audrey Gallagher's sweet vocals...this woman has a fabulous voice...a welcome treat from one of the finest Irish bands of the last decade..." -HOT PRESS (UK)

In 1995-96 Scheer released 3 EPs and their widely acclaimed album 'Infliction' for the 4AD label, while touring extensively through Europe, Canada and the US. The album and touring built a following that lobbied tirelessly for the release of this session once 4AD dropped it from their schedule.

The new release, appropriately titled '... and Finally' , was recorded at Rockfield Studios (Ash, Stone Roses, Pink Floyd) with producer Cliff Norrell (Henry Rollins, REM, Madonna). It features the lineup that remained constant through the band's history: Neal Calderwood and Paddy Leyden on scorching guitars, Peter Fleming on bass, Joe Bates on drums and honey-voiced Audrey Gallagher providing a delicious counterpoint to all the noise.

'...an impressively consistent record...both tunefully abrasive & abrasively tuneful at the same time...this album casts a quick glance back to see just what might have been' -BBM

Rock And Roll Casino.com "And Finally"

Just as the cliché states, it's often times better to get something late than to never get it at all. That's the case with And Finally, the second, and final, full-length record from the now defunct band Scheer, which originally hailed from Northern Ireland. Sad as it is for those who were fans of Scheer, the band decided to call it quits after recording their second full album. In fact, we should consider ourselves lucky that Schism Records maintained the distribution rights from indie-legend 4AD… if it hadn't, we might never have had the chance to hear the band's final exit.

While Scheer has been labelled in various music media bios as being an "alternative metal" group, their sounds veer from mainstream metal acts that have now found their way into the mainstream music stream. Unlike pop-oriented metal acts like Kid Rock and Korn, Scheer's sound was blistering, distinctively unique in strength and complex when it came to song arrangement.

Formed in 1993, Scheer originally found a home at a small Irish label before landing a deal with 4AD. Once among the other 4AD outfits, followed its initial Psychobabble EP with the Schism EP, which was released in 1995. In the following year, the group launched Infliction, its first full-length release. Based on the strength of two singles, Wish You Were Dead in particular, Infliction gained the band notable recognition and a small cult following. Strongly characterized by the shimmering and cutting vocals of Audrey Gallagher and the metallic guitars of her brother Neal, Scheer seemed to be poised for bigger things.

The band got to work on their next release in 1997, but its release got stalled for the past few years because of a contractual disagreement with 4AD. Now, after the wait is over, And Finally caps the band's brief but evocative history. The group's second (and almost-lost) full-length release picks up right where Infliction left off. The disc's opening "Deadly Serious" features a quick assault of cosmic guitars and riveting drums which both wrap themselves around the distinctive voice of Audrey Gallagher.

"First Contact" follows with a dreamy sense of power pop, while "Face the Sun" slows the beat down with a sense of eerie foreboding. "6am" sounds as if it could have been taken from the band's first full-length record, as it drives with power chords, quick drumbeats and tightness within the band despite the quick changes in tempo and rhythm.

Later tracks fluctuate between being quick and driving and sounding more apt for shoegazing. Some tracks have a bit of both in them, such as "Secrets and Lies," which is one of the more traditional-sounding songs, given its verse-chorus-verse layout. "Say the Word" closes the record out with a minimalistic drum track sprinkled with sparse guitar chords and subdued vocals… almost as if the band didn't want the ride to end.

Melody Maker - 5/25/96, p.50

Recommended - "...a murderously affecting album....Complex, heartrending and deeply thrilling, it is utterly superb..."

New Musical Express - 5/25/96, p.54

7 (out of 10) - "...marinated in melancholia....Audrey Gallagher's heavenly Björk-a-like voice lights up the album like a signal flare....INFLICTION is a marvelous study in light and shade,...[it] cuts to the bone and gives you a Band Aid..."

Option - 9/10/96, p.128

"...The secret here is in the combination of vocal and instrumentals: no matter how hard, furious and ugly a racket the band manages to generate...lead singer Audrey Gallagher's clear, lilting soprano, always pushed cleanly to the front of the mix, pulls things together..."

Alternative Press - 10/96, p.103

3 (out of 5) - "...manages to graft Talulah Gosh's head onto Skunk Anansie's body in an implausible Frankenstein experiment....A curious hybrid beast..."

Scheer
Infliction
(4AD)

Inflict Me With Your Artwork

Okay, so even if the gruesome, stitched up, bunched up, pocky-looking flesh on the cover leaves something to be desired - like maybe a big fat bandage to cover it up - the music inside's not bad. Vocally, singer Audrey Gallagher manages a Sundays-Juliana Hatfield-Björkesque sound. Combine that with music that is guitar-driven, heavy and melodic, and it becomes clear why the term "pop metal" has been bandied about so much when talking about this band.

Produced by Head (PJ Harvey's "Dry") and mixed by Spike.

Drake (Pet Shop Boys, New Order) the tracks on Infliction range from hard-driving, thrusting numbers like "Shéa," "Howling Boy" and "Wish You Were Dead," to slower, flowing tunes like "Sad Loved Girl", "Goodbye" and the remarkably Sundays-ish "Babysize." And, as seems to be the fashion these days, there is even an eleventh "secret" track - a stripped down "Demon" that makes for an interesting contrast to the earlier metalized version.

Apparently the band members have described their sound as "Pantera in bedroom slippers." As for me? I'd say they're more like White Zombie in a silk robe.

by: Miss Molly

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