Hailing from the ripe musical landscape known as Chicago, IL, Alone's latest EP finds the band at their finest yet, exhibiting stronger song writing and more dynamic grace than ever shown on their previous outings. Sounding somewhere along the lines of a cross between Garbage, Human Waste Project and Orgy, the band craft high energy songs filled with combative riffs and pulsing electronic ambiance, all the while guided by crisp, feathery female vocals.

Band frontwoman Rinat's assertive, yet vulnerable vocal performance helms the songs well, providing both aggression and melody while remaining edgy and focused, capitalizing fully upon her slightly raspy range. The guitar work is quite modern metal based in terms of tone and distortion, but its playing style tends to be fairly pointed and driving, devoting its attention to the general progression of the songs rather than vy for attention. This humble quality also surfaces within the bass playing which utilizes thick notes to plow a wide path, adding a sense of stability to the songs. Admittedly not the most technically challenging, the low ends supportive nature still does wind up making it the veritable backbone of the tracks as a whole. Meanwhile, the drum work captured here is scaled down and concentrated as the deep roomy thuds of the kick drum and dulled snare hits pepper the songs with a precise, almost mechanical timing, ensuring a rigid and continual pace. Rounding out the bands music is an electronic aspect that is actually quite subtle, suggesting traces of new wave combined with throbbing industrial, creating a haunting ambiance that swells over with a decided sense of urgency.

As a whole, the songs included here are straightforward and the band seem to have set their sights upon creating energetic tracks that smoothly go from start to finish, rather than sacrifice momentum for experimental ventures. They're well rounded and hooky, hinting at commercial appeal while still retaining a genuine integrity, a quality which isn't easily achieved. Unfortunately though, even with the music being competent and easily digested, there are still times when it can feel a bit thin and repetitive, something which could perhaps be the result of the band being a three piece in a time where most groups ranks consist of at least five. However, though the band may not possess as much depth and color as others, the polished song writing skills they do have at their disposal does tend to make up for the aforementioned shortcomings. As such, Alone are a band who are definitely all on the same page and with such a united vision, it shouldn't be long until they get signed; and rightfully so as its rare to see a talented female fronted act in the heavier music scene that doesn't feel manufactured or overtly contrived.