Northern Ireland’s Scheer stepped into the vacancy left when Curve went on hiatus and adopted that band’s template — sassbucket vocals atop a quasi-shoegaze bed of noise — as its own, though with a bit more of a metallic spin. It was their misfortune to do this at roughly the same time Garbage was testing the same maneuver. Lacking the Shirley Manson family’s murderous commercial instincts, however, Scheer got overlooked. Judging from the quintet’s 4AD album, Infliction, this wasn’t entirely unjustified. The band kicks up an okay racket and Audrey Gallagher is certainly a strong vocalist, but the material is not desperately memorable. Fans of Curve or Garbage will find it interesting, but it’s no patch on Doppelganger.
The posthumously self-released …And Finally is markedly better. With more tuneful material and cleaner production, Scheer comes closer to achieving a worthwhile balance of the ethereal with the brutal. Anyone who was intrigued when Metallica claimed the Cocteau Twins were one of their favorite bands will likely enjoy …And Finally.