Ramsey – You’ve Got A Lot Of Heart, Kid (2013)

When I searched for this alternative rock band in Google I couldn’t find much history on them, apart from that they were founded in 2012 and have released an EP entitled You’ve Got A Lot Of Heart, Kid.

The first 3 songs of this EP sound exactly the same in the opening 20 seconds, with heavy rock guitars to the exact same rhythm and beat.  All of the songs on the EP are very hard to listen to because they sound as if the band is a metal band and not alternative rock. However, at the end of the EP they have an acoustic version of the song ‘One Way To Anywhere’ that unsurprisingly is my favourite.

Track 1, ‘One Way To Anywhere’ kind of sets the tone for the whole EP sounding with lyrics that can’t really hear and are more like shouting.  I would comment on the message of the song, but I couldn’t hear the lyrics well enough to know what the song was about.

‘Legacy’ is a better example of an alternative rock song, with lyrics that can be heard and lighter guitars.  The message of the song is that the lead singer’s legacy will last and he will find truth in the lies that have been told.

‘Street Lights’ is an example of their metal influence and is much like ‘One Way To Anywhere’ as the lyrics aren’t actually sung.  Instead, they are shouted with an inaudible voice so you can’t really hear them and the message isn’t understood.

‘Versus’ is something quite different.  It’s still an alternative rock song, but is slower without guitars overpowering the vocals during the verses.  The song is actually quite catchy, something to pump your fists too during a festival.  The message of the song is about being someone in an emotional battle and killing themselves before everybody else does, so not the most uplifting message ever.

The title track of this EP, ‘You’ve Got A Lot Of Heart, Kid’, shows yet again Ramsey’s rock influences with heavy guitars and quiet vocals, subsequently making me turn the volume up to hear them.  There is also a hint of metal in there for in the chorus the lyrics are shouted, as they would be in a metal song.  Despite this, the song is kind of catchy and I might even decide to give it another chance.

Now onto my favourite song, ‘One Way To Anywhere (Acoustic)’.  The lyrics and guitar are administered beautifully and that’s all there is to the song, just the guitar and his voice.  However, the vocalist sounds as if he’s not 100% into the song as he is singing without any raw emotion.  Other than that though, this song is very well crafted.

Overall, the EP has a more metal feel to it than alternative rock and that’s what lets it down.  They could have sung the same songs without all the shouting and maybe my opinion would have been more positive.