Ramallah "But a Whimper" CD
[Bridge Nine]
Holy motherfuckin' hell... this band, obviously sharing its name with a Palestinian city, comes to us from White Trash Rob (Blood for Blood, Sinners and Saints) and god damn is this shit heavy! I'm not fucking kidding, this is way fucking heavier than Blood for Blood. This is metallic fuckin' hardcore with an emphasis on the fuckin' metal. Imagine Entombed circa "Wolverine Blues" combined with recent Blood for Blood and throw in Rob's throaty vocals and there you have it. And aside from the drumming and a few additional vocals by Jacob Bannon, Rob handles all of the instruments as well. This shit fucking rules. Think tons of fucking brutal chord progressions, a sick and nasty guitar tone, some wicked little dissonant guitar harmonies/textures... and songs that are short, precise, and pack one hell of a punch. Every once in awhile things take an oddly melodic turn, and there are some brief singing vocals as well (notably in the disturbing acoustic track "True Crime", which deals with child abuse), but for the most part this an all out assault that runs just under 14 minutes... leaving me hungry for more. The recording is fucking nice. Everything is heavy and forceful, the mix is solid... no complaints from me. It's loud and clear and it takes care of business. And as usual when it comes from Bridge Nine the layout looks slick. Aside from some strange pixilation on the lyrics everything looks rock solid. The imagery is all done in high contrast with few colors (red, blue, black, and white) and is textured to look like worn, crumpled paper. The song titles are even listed in Arabic (as well as English)!? Lyrically this is a bit different from Rob's other bands, though still bitter, of course. "The blood is on the wall but we prefer to sleep, As we plunge down the dead end path of inhumanity so will we suffer, It's coming back at you, It's coming back at me, But you'll just close your eyes and let it bleed... Just take a look at the papers, Your leaders, they're killers, they're liars, What they do in your name to make the bodies pile higher..." Damn, I don't know what else to say. White Trash Rob is one talented motherfucker. The only thing wrong with this EP is that it's too damn short. But then again, that definitely helps it leave a mark that you won't soon forget. Look the fuck out for this one... I'm impressed. (8/10)
Running time - 13:48, Tracks: 8
[Notable tracks: Ramallah, Who am I?, True Crime]
Bridge Nine Records - http://www.bridge9.com

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