ROUGH GRIND is a four piece band hailing from Jyvaskla, Finland. "Trouble For Nothing" is their EP debut release presented by Finland's Inverse Records. There're only four tracks on the EP, and not a whole lot out there about this band. I would say ROUGH GRIND falls into a Modern Metal sound, something tailored after popular heavy AOR you would hear on radio these days. It's an interesting album that I found pretty enjoyable.

"Trouble for Nothing" opens with "Gilded Cage", which features some un-credited keyboards. Through some research via the good ol' internet, I discovered these were played by Petri Koistinen of BURNCLEAR.  There's much mention of hypocrites, arrogance and misrepresentation in the lyrics. The overall theme of the song seems to have a political pulse to it, which knowing nothing of Finnish politics, left me focusing more on the music and the overall feel of the song. At least that was until the lyrics mention 'Oh say can you see?'. Then it becomes apparent that the band is focusing the song's theme on America. This concept seems curious and quirky to me, but the song is still catchy. There's great riff driven guitars, and purposeful solos. Sami's vocals are in English and have only the slightest accent to them. Unlike many bands, ROUGH GRIND does a good job handling English lyrics.

"Leap of Faith" is the second track and it's more of a pounding, thunderous song that really adds Ari's bass and Killi's drums up in the mix. Again, with the great guitar solos and strong riffs provide a strong base for Sami's vocals. Another catchy track, although a bit less engaging for me than "Gilded Cage". Still, it's another good song, and definitely worth a listen. Track three is "Bulletproof", and I liked this one from the very first listen. Backed again by Koistinen's keyboards, this song is probably the most accessible track on the EP. I would imagine this would be the first single, and would likely gather interest at radio.

"Hereafter" closes out the EP, and is a really strong ballad styled song. It has a slower pace with much more reflective and personal lyrics.  Again, I'm impressed with how well Sami handles the vocals and English. "Hereafter" really highlights this, and is my favorite track. The playing on this track really shines as well.

All told, I really enjoyed these four songs, and it's brevity is really one of the only criticism I can muster. Well, that and their desire to enter the spectrum of American politics. I'll definitely be on the lookout for a forthcoming full length release, hopefully sooner than later.