Disconnect "s/t" LP
[Spacement]
Another interesting release from the Spacement camp, highlighting another Reno band (featuring current and ex-members of This Computer Kills, Bafabegiya, and Soul Emigre) venturing into an indie-ish twist on melodic hardcore/punk. Once more basslines play a dominant role in the rhythm section and weave between guitars and drums, and the music ranges from discordant chords and driving rhythms to chunkier picking patterns and melodic overtones. The lyrics are a raspy sort of spoken/yelled singing, they're not totally clean, but they're not aggressive either. Imagine Jawbreaker gone towards sort of a laidback post-hardcore vibe and you'd have somewhat of an idea what's going on here. They never get chaotic or anything, make no mistake, there's nothing "screamo" about this, it's not acerbic or whatever. They just use melody in an interesting way, so it's not overpowering or overly catchy, but it's memorable and achieves a certain energetic quality. "Burn the CD, Record the Record" changes things up a bit by bringing in acoustic guitars and leaving out the percussion, and "Thrift Store Gem" adds in some droning sort of textures that have more of a modern influence, but other than that the songs are definitely more consistent, relying heavily on rhythm and the layering of different guitar parts to create dissonant yet tangible combinations. The production is pretty good. As is often the case with vinyl there's a little bit of a harshness to the high-end tones, but the bass tone is killer and has perfect placement in the mix, the guitars are aptly distorted without being weak or biting, and the vocals don't lean in front of the music. They're definitely in a good position. I think the guitars could be a little rounder and more vibrant, but other than that I wouldn't mess with too much. The LP is housed in a screenprinted sleeve printed in red ink on matte white paper. Inside is a large xeroxed booklet with a green cover that has lots of show flyers on it, with lyrics and additional art inside. The illustrations are all similar to what's on the cover, and usually reference lines in the songs. Sometimes the lyrics can be a little weird and abstractly idealistic for me to handle, but for the most part things deal with messages of hope and a little bit of socio-political commentary. "And if tomorrow ends today, forget this name and place, try to remember what sound seduced me here. What we leave behind, when this life is gone, travel with dying footprints, to memory and taste..." I like this. The aesthetic of the release is definitely not something that I identify with because I'm not really into the whole positive/unity/happiness thing, but these are definitely strong songs that I can appreciate and enjoy, so I'd be down with checking out more from this band. (7/10)
Running time - 30:00 (approximately), Tracks: 14
[Notable tracks: Revolution of the Trees, Good Paranoia, Thrift Store Gem]
Spacement Records - http://www.spacementreno.com

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