Red Shift - ​Bumblebee

Red Shift 

​Bumblebee
self-released; 2017

​3.4 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

Adam Swartz (guitar), Christos Cunning (keyboard), Josh Bugis (drums), Tal Bogdonov (bass) and Ty Koch (vocals) are Red Shift. The band released Bumblebee which is a demo quality EP that showcases different style and themes. 

​The band opens with “Bumblebee Groove” which is somewhere between a Jimi Hendrix and a jam band sound. It’s a pretty standard sounding jam and the band doesn't exactly stay in the pocket. The guitar sounds off quite often from the other instrumentation. In all honesty this song reminds me of bands I would have found playing around town in my college days. That's not a bad thing but the song was a good one for a Friday night. 

Up next is “Jump (You Gotta)” which has a vibe between surf and indie rock. The band is tighter this time around and the chorus is arguably the most catchy they get. Overall, a solid song that was enjoyable.

“Dandelion” is homage to ’70s soul and funk with all the tropes to go along with it. The vocalist goes falsetto and the song is predictable as he sings about a sweet love interest. The band closes with “Heartstrings” which veers back into surf and indie rock.

Overall, the band has some talent but will need a good amount of improvement to compete with the most inventive music around today. They need to figure out who they are as a band. The four-songs all pull the band in different directions and don’t do much to create a signature sound or foundation. As of right now I’d like to see the band start with the fundamentals and work on tightening up the delivery.

As I mentioned previously they remind me a lot of the bands I used to hear on a college campus. The good thing is the band seems very young from their photo and they have some time to work on creating an original sound and improving on the technical side of things. The band has hints of potential but for right now fall into a case of wait and see. Best of luck.

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