Here's the succinct debut EP from this new band that features members/ex-members of Mouthpiece, Hands Tied, Face the Enemy, The First Step, and The Killing Flame. As expected from such a lineup, the disc offers up some no nonsense hardcore/punk, but it's not generic at all, and it's actually pretty different from the rather basic framework of some of their former bands like, say, Hands Tied, or something like that. The songs are short and to the point, sure. And yeah, there are some pretty simplistic power chord rhythms in tow, but most of the riffing has a lot of loose dissonance involved, and the song structures tend to change frequently without a lot of cut and paste repetition. The basslines pound away and work more with the percussion than the guitar parts, there are a decent amount of grating textures layered in against more concrete guitar riffs, and the vocals are straight shouts - but like the music there's a good deal of variety in the performance as far as vocal patterns and overall intensity are concerned. "Obsession" features some surprisingly brutal guest backup vocals from Matt Warnke (Bold, Running Like Thieves) that really add a different dimension to the track, the chorus of "Break It" is a little more straightforward and along with the more old school based "You Had a Choice" becomes the most comparable of this work to a band like Mouthpiece or whatnot, etc. They even close with a cover of Black Flag's "Fix Me", so use that as an indication of where some of their influences lie (notably in their own "Our Day", which is almost eerily similar in some ways). I have no complaints with the recording. It's warm, natural, and the mix is clear. The bass tone is killer, the vocals sound excellent, the guitars are dirty and possess just the right amount of chunky grit without being all that heavy, etc. Good stuff. The disc comes in a nice looking digipack with a few band photos and some rough, worn textures alongside images of assault rifles and bullets and all that. The songs deal with your usual hardcore topics of staying true to what you believe in, friendship, perseverance, etc. I wouldn't call the content generic though, and I'm always into direct and to the point lines like, "You spoke your piece you had your say, now bite your tongue get out of my way." Also included is a CD-Rom interface with a bio, shitloads of photos, about 10 minutes of interview footage with the band members, and five live videos shot in 2004. The live videos are a little rough in audio quality, but the interview footage is great, so overall the added material is a good chunk of content added to the EP's brief running time. The sticker adorning the shrinkwrap around the package recommends this for fans of Bl'ast!, Black Flag, SSD, and Judge, and I would agree with that for the most part. I'm hearing way more from the Black Flag/Bl'ast school of playing than I am SSD, and I'm not picking up many similarities to the mighty Judge at all, but no matter. This is a nice EP, and it's cool to see a new band drawing from classic influences in a different manner that doesn't come across as trendy in the least.
[Livewire]
Running time - 10:17, Tracks: 6
[Notable tracks: they're all solid songs]
Livewire Records - http://www.livewire-records.com
