The band was founded by the Piekoszewski brothers – the guitarist Rafał and the vocalist Marcin, who is a former collaborator of the group Kristen and a member of the Woody Alien duo. The two of them also play in the band Houdini. After recording 3 albums and a few year long hiatus Plum returned with a new drummer and created the LP "Hoax", which helped them recapture their energy. "Hoax" is much lighter than the earlier releases – the production exposes the guitar lines whereas the distorted base seems to be pushed into the background. Additional guitar tracks were added in some compositions making the overall sound richer and more interesting. However it wasn't only the noisy guitar songs that made it to the album. Spare room was found for an experimental miniature "Thread", which features an appearance by Robert Piernikowski from Naprzykłat.
Plum's noise music is delightfully melodious. The thumping, bass sound brings to mind the music of NoMeansNo and of the abovementioned Woody Alien duo. On the other hand the bothers' talent for making catchy tunes provokes associations with Something Like Elvis. These comparisons are however somewhat far-fetched because Plum is more diverse than the said bands. Some of Plum's songs sound like hits by Pavement. The Piekoszewski brothers' band doesn't limit itself to the post-hardcore style, it has more to offer than just crude, loud sounds. Apart from making rock songs the group eagerly creates experimental, slowly flowing compositions that bring to mind film music.
Plum's concerts have their own specificity but from album to album the band records less shouting. The musicians try to operate with more than just pure energy, they have a plan for the making of each song and they have a vision of the entire album's atmosphere. Following the release of "Hoax" Rafał Piekoszewski gave an interview for popupmusic.pl, in which he said:
"for us this is a time of greater musical maturity. Before we didn't grasp all of the nuances of making music so we played very loud. Now we are interested in another sphere – in the strictly musical context of guitar playing".
Author: Jacek Świąder, maj 2013.
Discography:
2000 – Express... 6 EP
2001 – Out Of Confusion
2004 – Unrest EP
2005 – Nothing Personal
2006 – Sink Or Swim EP
2007 – Witness Of Your Fall
2011 – Hoax
2012 – Emergence