Just three songs short and easily consumable, the first in a planned series of three EPs from noisy Cambridge quartet The Tupolev Ghost rattles around these speakers with ease, switching from grungy hard rock to the slightly more structured stop-start of something a little more complex, all wrapped up in an exceptionally loud lo-fi bundle so fleeting and tantalising it might almost be considered a tease.

Step right up for a dustbin-lid drum sound that almost drowns out the vocals, throatily enraged in places yet wiry, Q And Not U-style, in others, the music itself a tip of the hat to Fugazi with distorted guitars lightweight and streamlined but doubtless still capable of laceration. The shack-recorded sound is so far from the chunky chug of mainstream production that it’s almost emaciated in comparison, and whilst this lo-fi way should rarely be considered a bad thing, the niggling impression left by The Alpha EP’s production values is that it could do with a little more punch, the tracks not always hurtling through the air towards your jugular like the moor-stalking behemoths they should be.

Not that the EP can’t survive without this suggested tweak, and it rightly does, hammering home over 12-ish minutes its discordant Dischord point – ‘First Prize’ a stalking heavy-hitter with periods of vocal insecurity, the harshly-panning snare effect on the sloping, fuzzy ‘Autodidact’ proving itself a work of slight genius before the release rounds off with a battle of sharply-clean lead guitar lines. Hit repeat.

8/10

Debut release for both band and label, this blistered and pummelled three track slab of mid 90's styled Chicago grimness is the first of three planned EPs that'll hopefully see the light of day this year.

Already garnering repute and acclaim following their ultra limited, 200 copies only 'take courage' demo / mini album, this Cambridge quartet are already haring fast on the outside lane offering their alternative to the musical landscape seemingly dominated by off the peg 'shelf' assembled ensembles much glorified by the indie inkies. Instead the sound of the Tupoloev Ghost is one that's been swamp dragged to be crafted meticulously and moulded out of some insanely discordant primordial ooze.

Wrestled by crippled time signatures, jabbing riffs and a deep rooted conflict and a latent aggression, this quartet ostensibly procure elements of hardcore to their bludgeoning bow, within that matrix sickly pour forth post, math, slo-core, metal (and even occasionally - as on the greater part of 'Autodidact'- prog) dialects. All this is stirred into an uncompromising take no prisoners brew culminating in an titan of a release whose arrangements are disfigured, discordant and derailed to be spiked with timer charged kegs of acute attrition and sit somewhere between the Arm and Hey Colossus.

Mixed by Owen Turner at the famous Sickroom (Magoo, the Broken Family Band, Sennen et al) these three cuts sound like throwbacks to classic era Dischord and Touch 'n' Go, appearing like some kind of fistfight between Shellac and Fugazi, these mutant festers squirm and itch like puss filled scabs, bleakly edgy and rooted to the spot by a stalking grind, 'first prize' the opening cut is particularly afflicted with an unerring negativity that both scalds and jars with shock therapy alarm as it scowls from out of the grooves.

The previously aforementioned 'autodidact' squirms malignantly with a veritable maths accent reminiscent of Slint before without any warning erupting 2m30s in into a frenzied freeform rout. 'Ambulances' wraps up the set, perhaps the best moment of the set - potent, volcanic and charged with a sinew snapping electrical atmosphere as it careers, blisters and punishes. So bloody good we're off to source a copy of that debut 'Take Courage' release.

Sounding like Shellac nursing a particularly painful hangover, Cambridge quartet The Tupolev Ghost have been trading in a fine line of abrasive noise rock for nigh on three years, and The Alpha EP follows their Take Courage demo from 2006.

Their influences are as clear as day – as well as Albini's aforementioned outfit, the spectre Fugazi looms large and there's more than a hint of Slint – but The Tupolev Ghost are refreshingly different to most British bands at the moment. Opener 'First Prize' sets out the band's stall, lurching along with menace, packing bludgeoning riffs and intense vocal shrieks in its armoury.

But just when you think you've got The Tupolev Ghost neatly pegged and pigeonholed, they bowl a musical googly in the form of the ambitious 'Autodidact'. James Parrish turns in another impassioned vocal performance, veering from brittle croon to fire-and-brimstone holler, as the band behind him switch from mid-tempo seethe to punk freakout.

'Ambulances' knocks the lot into the proverbial cocked hat, though. Bouncing along with This Aint Vegas-esque energy, it's loaded with hooks and irresistible guitar interplay and makes for a gloriously melodic closer.

3.5/5

The Tupolev Ghost are a rock band from Cambridge. Their debut release, 'The Alpha EP', is released off the back of an increasing fan base garnered almost completely on their impressive live shows. The quartet's music defies any wholesome categorisation, but takes influence from Shellac and Mclusky as much as Fugazi and Drive Like Jehu. It's exciting music full of walls of noise and brooding build ups. Drowned in Sound begged the question on a review of their demo: 'if they're this good on a demo recording, how great must they be on album?' 'The Alpha EP', their debut release for Disjuncture, answers this question. Limited to 200 copies on CD only.

Of all the things to boast, it's odd that Cambridge's The Tupolev Ghost almost proudly proclaim that they've never really sent this demo out to people; though I guess it only adds to their status as one of the British underground's best kept secrets.

This is just a taster, recorded in two days, for the EP they're currently finishing off, but even at this early stage, Take Courage is a demo that demands your attention, wholly and completely – and if you're prepared, it's an investment you'll be rewarded for, whether it's in the soft shoe melancholy of 'Little Spirits' or the desperate guitar squeals of 'Helvetica'.

That off-kilter mathy flow will almost certainly attract Fugazi comparisons, with a sound that harks back to the fractured later end of late eighties US underground rock - though they slot more accurately into that loose-knit UK sound shaped by the likes of Public Relations Exercise, Moleck, and Meet Me In St. Louis. If September's sessions have been half as fruitful as this, UK independent rock could pretty soon have some new darlings to fawn over - and frankly it'll be well deserved.

4/5

It's a rare occurrence to receive a demo that's worth listening to. Usually there's a chance that I'll listen to it once, maybe twice if they're lucky, and it'll eventually disappear under a pile of CDs sharing the same fate. The criticisms marked are mostly self-inflicted, though: the demo often seems like a pale imitation of an already established band, hindered even more by its vindication for songs to be recorded in public toilets. Which begs the question: why should I bother writing about it?

The Tupolev Ghost have restored my faith in the demo. There's nothing special about the recording itself, as the band work within the limitations of what a demo can achieve – half-a-dozen tracks, a small-budget recording, all the usual stereotypes. But it doesn't matter at all. None of it does. The songs stand up for themselves well enough.

The Tupolev Ghost are, collectively, a prodigious talent. Some of the instrumental parts do veer dangerously close to a kind of 'emo was better back in my day' shtick, but the four-piece don't need to rely on the bands of yore to drive their music forward. Although they takes from the profuse palette of punk, post-rock and noise, their sound will most appeal to fans of Fugazi.

The demo starts with hefty intent. Pigeonhole it in whatever way you want, but a simple description will suffice: 'Helvetica' rocks. There is a lot of substance in the band's melodic enjambments and dissonant swirls of guitar throughout the demo. Like Fugazi before them, the songs twist and turn in erratic fashion, and yet somehow manage to leave an imprint in your mind. The scuffling noise interjections and the screams from vocalist James Parrish gives the music a foreboding feel, leaving the listener tentatively pondering what will come next. This in itself holds a lot of promise for the future - which is nice, right?

Demos often restrain and hinder a band's sound. The Tupolev Ghost break out of these restraints and leave them a mangled wreck. Their tightly wound riffing and projected screams should propel them into the big leagues. Listening to this begs the question: if they're this good on a demo recording, how great must they be on album? The future looks bright for this Cambridge quartet, and I for one can't wait to hear results.

8/10