Deaf Penalty "100 Reasons to Die" CD
[Full House]
More melodic hardcore/punk from this Finnish band. This is not unlike their last full-length as far as combining heavy hardcore with a catchy, melodic punk edge and singing vocals that have a slightly raspy tinge to them. This is a lot better than their last record, though. The production is stronger, the writing is more memorable... this is just good stuff. Sometimes the vocals have a sarcastic ring to them and that can be a bit of a hindrance, I wish he would just sing all the time, but it's not a big deal. "Step Out of Line" is faster but really short, less than two minutes, with tons of energy that really jumps out at you. "Don't Look Back" is catchy as hell, including some great vocal harmonies and borderline pop punk riffing... just an excellent song. "See You at My Funeral" plays similar to "Step Out of Line", though not quite as fast. There are some token "whoa ohhh" gang vocals though, and this one's another definite winner. As for the production, nothing particularly bothers me. The drums are nice and natural, the bass presence is solid, the guitars are heavy but clear, etc. Something about the vocals could stand for some improvement, but I can't put my finger on it. I don't know... maybe they could be a little bit clearer or warmer, or maybe they need to be mixed in with the music a little bit more? There's just a little bit of separation, but it's not a problem. The layout looks fine, aside from the cheesy band logo, which I still don't like. The front and back covers have tinted green images of a toe-tagged corpse on a coroner's table, there's a full color band photo under the tray, and there are a bunch of live photos interspersed with the lyrics inside the booklet (all in black and white). I'd say the lyrics need some work, because they don't really make that much sense in a lot of cases, and even when they do, they're just too simple and almost hokey... "I feel so sorry for myself, but I got no worries, Only one mistake too much and it's payback time now, Again and again... yes I did it again I went too far, but I was lonely, Again and again... yes I did it again I went too far and still I'm lonely... and I know it's all my fault." I'm still not into their band name at all, and the lyrics do nothing for me, but musically this is really good stuff. If they keep it up their next record will really kick some ass. (7/10)
Running time - 24:30, Tracks: 9
[Notable tracks: Step Out of Line, Don't Look Back, See You at My Funeral]
Full House Records - http://www.fullhouserecords.com

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