Split CD's can be a great idea, they can help bands to gain a wider audience by being grouped alongside other acts who have a similar approach or have a more established fan base in a certain area for example. Sometimes though it can be a double edged sword as putting your music on the same disc as an artist who has a more diverse musical outlook may actually be counter productive. 

First up on this disc we have Saboteur who are a melodic punk act from Dallas and in the shape of “Bitchin' Into Oblivion” have the standout track here, the vocal hook of “you can't keep holding on to the broken arm of a dying love song” stays in the brain for days this is almost matched by the slower groove of “This Is A Bike Crime” with only the harder edged “The Working Class Will Kick Your Ass” not quite working for me.  

We also have the more alt-rock sounds of The Mockingbird Nightmare who evoke the likes of Dartz and YourCodeNameIs:Milo with their uptempo, angular riffs, best of their three tracks is “Show Me The Blueprints” with its sinuous bass and chiming guitar evoking an almost Cure-like quality.

The disc is closed out by the dance oriented hardcore grooves of Red Light Green Light . Their four tracks are broadly in a similar vein to the kind of intense dance infused rock that Enter Shikari are gaining such current exposure for and as such any fans of the St Albans quartet would do well to check out Red Light Green Light as well.

What this collection proves without question is that all three bands here deserve to have wider exposure but the common denominator between all three may prove to be too narrow, fans of Saboteur may find Red Light Green Light too hardcore and leftfield for them and fans of The Mockingbird Nightmare may feel that the other two bands are too punk which makes this collection an interesting melting pot but one that may only appeal in its entirety to the most open minded of fans. 7/10

Let us know your views