White Knight: Face and Names EP

(self- released)

Morrissey-style crooning and prog-tinged indie rock go hand in hand for White Knight, which sees an amalgam of two unlikely genres blended seamlessly into one. There is a relatively apparent King Crimson, or Pink Floyd, influence here, tempered a bit by jangly guitar work and the aforementioned vocal work. Three of the four members of the band trade off on vocals, but each privilege that kind of plastic take on vocals that informs someone like Mike Patton — the type of vocalist who can go high or low quickly, and who doesn’t shy away from any particular affectations. As such, the quartet is a bit difficult to pin down. The musicianship here is virtuosic, and the melodies are catchy. It’s obvious that everyone is working towards an epic scale, and that comes through in the resulting music.