Brighton quartet rift are an ambitious young band mixing diverse influences into a melting pot, and producing an impressive result. On their most recent demo, double A-side Bitter/Confront me they churn out two catchy melodic rockers with plenty of passion. The band sound together, with excellent guitar playing from Tom Alty (especially in the Jimmy Page-esque solo on Confront Me), and impressive bass skills from Andy Haines. Adam Kidd’s vocals sound passionate and skilled, with elements of falsetto without taking it over the top, though at times (particularly in the first half of Bitter) his rhythm guitar could be put to better use to fill out the sound. After these two tracks we then have the 6 ½ minute B-side Heartache (Pulmonary Artery), which is an atmospheric, building epic of a rock number and perhaps better than either of the lead tracks. Whilst this 3-track demo EP can sound derivative at times (Bitter contains a very Nirvana-like riff which appears twice), the production is of very high for a demo recording, and the overall sound is remarkably accomplished. To me, rift have enough talent, passion and songwriting ability to cut it overground if they can get a big break. ****