This band features ex-members of Whenwedie, but this is a totally different style of music. It's sort of upbeat and rocked out indie rock/hardcore with a memorable sense of melody and creative songwriting. It sort of reminds me of later Endpoint (with better vocals) meets the musical rawness of mid-period Jawbreaker perhaps? Most of the guitar parts are semi-distorted, and the vocals are a harsh form of singing. There's some dissonance at times, helping to make for a nice blend of dynamics - especially in "Eurasia" when they drop back to just bass and drums. "Amherst" is more rhythmic and offers up a great combination of clean and distorted guitars, plus the chorus is bit more emphatic and I'm definitely into that. The production isn't bad. The vinyl adds in some unnecessary high-end tones that disrupt the clarity, but it's still strong. The bass tone is great and the vocals sound fine, the only thing I'd tweak is the guitar distortion. As with all of Whenwedie's releases the packaging here is incredible. The 7" is on clear blue vinyl in a diecut sleeve printed on matte brown paper. Inside is an insert printed on textured gray paper with lyrics and some imagery (all of which is tasteful and minimal). The tracklist is handwritten in metallic silver ink on the back flap of the sleeve. The lyrics seem to follow a clear theme dealing with life in a safe little apathetic, happily ignorant box and the confusing satisfaction that people often derive from it: "It's just your life you're wasting. Being afraid or being sedated. It's their heavy thumb making you play so dumb..." Nice work. The first 200 copies even come with a full-length CD (reviewed separately)! I hope this band gets the attention that they deserve, unlike Whenwedie, who went basically ignored. I'm glad some of the guys are still at it, because they're very talented on many fronts.
[Redundant Audio International]
Running time - 10:00 (approximately), Tracks: 3
[Notable tracks: Death Culture, Amherst]
Redundant Audio International - [email protected]
