New Jersey's Overstand features former members of the promising act Charge, and this disc (released by GAOTU Records, which I assume may be the band's own label since I can't find any information about it anywhere) collects all of their recorded material to date (sans one song, I'm not sure why). About half of the tracks have been previously released on the "Kali Yuga" 7" and a split 7" with Sirens, but the remaining material is exclusive to this CD. The 10 tracks represent two different recording sessions that are both a little on the raw side, which does hold back the band's true potential just a touch, but your ears can adjust within a couple of minutes, and the explosive nature of the band's finest work certainly overcomes any hindrances the sound quality might present. Like Charge, Overstand seems to draw a lot of comparisons to Bad Brains and Absolution and whatnot, which I can hear to a degree, but especially with regard to the former I'd say that most of the comparisons are coming from the fact that there are a couple of reggae-ish breaks to be found, and I guess there's a "spiritual" sort of tone to some of the lyrical content as well. But while there is an Absolution/Burn kind of vibe to the vocals (which is always a good thing in my opinion), the music tends to be based around energetic hardcore/punk with roving basslines and lots of unexpectedly rocked out riffs that come from a totally different perspective. The older songs from 2008 feel a little more focused overall, filtering the band's diverse range of influences into a more cohesive whole that still pushes outside the boundaries from time to time, but there's a lot of interesting shit going on regardless.
Overstand "Brainwash Mind Games"
Strangely enough it seems that Overstand is already calling it quits, as according to their MySpace page they're recording one more four-song 7" and some of the members are already moving on to a new band called Magnitude. That being said, these limited edition Overstand CD's might be gone sooner than later, so don't sleep on picking one up if you're into what you hear...
Comments
I own both the Kali Yuga 7” as well as the split 7” with Sirens, great stuff. Didn’t know about this CD, ordered it straight away, hahaha… Underrated band. And yeah, the Absolution/Burn influences don’t hurt em one bit (on the contrary).
11.30.2009 | By Edwin
Great music! I’m diggin this a lot!
11.30.2009 | By Carlos
Very good stuff ... but is Charge defunct now? That would be a damn shame.
11.30.2009 | By zg
First thing that came to my mind when listening to Drop Out…..old Metallica. Good Tunes.
12.7.2009 | By JohnnyW