This CDEP compiles the band’s first 7” alongside four re-recorded songs from the band’s out-of-print debut CD – and despite the fact that some of these songs were written years ago, there’s a remarkable amount of variance from song to song. “Motion Of The Ocean” carelessly careens like an existenialist hoedown gone terribly awry; “Oh, Your Silver Heart” is a heartfelt alt-country ballad reminscent of Whiskeytown; and “Cannonball” is reminscent of Against Me!‘s early material.

Two of my favorite things I love about reviewing music are the introduction to good new bands and finding new ways to discuss what the music is like or who they remind me of. Fake Problems is one of those bands that came out of nowhere to stun me and left me virtually speechless.

Rock ‘n’ roll with a country swagger is the simplest way to describe the anomoly that Fake Problems is. After searching my vast collection of music and knowledge, finding a commonality between Fake Problems debut disc, Spurs & Spokes/Bull – Matador and anything else I’ve ever heard, I came up blank.

That my friends is one of the best things a reviewer can say about a band. The originality of Fake Problems is exciting and intriguing. Spurs & Spokes… is somewhat of a collection of songs for the band. Taking the two songs from the band’s first 7” disc and four tracks from their debut (out-of-print) cd, provides the only concern about the band. Without much true new material, I’m not jumping headfirst on board with Fake Problems. Although, the more I hear songs like the alt-country ballad “Oh! You’re Silver Heart” and “My First Million” tell me this band will be a fan favorite in the sense of a cult-classic.

It may not be in the cards for major airplay, but music fans that love unique music, i.e. Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Pavement, Doo Rag, will fall head over heals for Fake Problems. — 8.5/10, riftrock.com

If, in their early days, the members of My Chemical Romance spent less time listening to the Misfits and watching horror movies, and more time listening to Whiskeytown and early Against Me! while watching some classic westerns, they might have ended up sounding a little like Fake Problems. Now, that might seem a bit of a stretch, but there are definitely parallels here: both seem to enjoy grim topics, singer Chris Farren’s voice often brings to mind MCR’s Gerard Way, and a comparison can be drawn in the theatrical styling of the two groups.

Spurs & Spokes/ Bull > Matador is a combination of two different recording sessions done by Fake Problems, giving listeners eight songs to become acquainted with the band before they release their full-length later this year. The quartet draws the listener into their western theme right at the opening with “Motion of the Ocean” with some very country riffing that eventually breaks way into a galloping drum beat and Farren’s vocals breaking in, followed by what can only be described as hillbilly gang vocals. This western motif has a certain allure to it, as the shouts of “woohoo!” and “yeehaw!” that are sprinkled across the disc just add to its charm.

Even though the western sound can be heard in each of the eight tracks, that doesn’t seem to limit the disc’s variety. No two songs sound similar, stretching from the slow ballad “Oh, Your Silver Heart” to the aggressive “Cannonball,” to the alt-folk of “Sorry, Ok, Sorry, Ok, Sorry.” The mixing on the album sounds great, with the twangy guitars never taking too much attention away from the bouncy bass lines to be found around the disc.

Farren is equal parts poet and storyteller, his lyrics often offering insight into his personal politics (though never coming off as heavy-handed). “To me,” he claims on the disc’s opener, “every plane I see overhead is as far as the sky goes.” Nothing groundbreaking there, but it’s when he follows it up by asserting “it’s not like I’m completely closed to truth beyond science, I just need something more than a book,” and then concludes with memories that struggle with explanations for what may be a miracle from his childhood that the immense honesty of his lyrics shine through.

Though the vocals seem to turn some off of the band, I haven’t had this problem with Spurs & Spokes/Bull > Matador. The only flaw I noticed was that the disc does lose a bit of steam in its second half, but considering that the second half is composed of re-recordings of the band’s older tracks, it points to the possibility that this band just keeps getting better with time, and only makes the future seem even brighter for this young band. — 81%, absolutepunk.net