First up is "Is:Means", the debut full-length from Brooklyn, NY's Reds, who I remember from their demo a year or two ago (and all three of those songs appear here in re-recorded form). This disc continues along the same lines and kind of takes a jangly and borderline chaotic style of screamy indie rock and adds the energy of raw hardcore/punk. It's not particularly heavy in either delivery or the literal tonality of the recording, so I do find myself wishing the guitars were a little brighter and had a hint more of an edge to the distortion, but I like that the vocals are just kind of yelled as opposed to being the over the top screams that often go hand in hand with this sort of music. The riffs jump around a lot but the material is fairly consistent in overall atmosphere, with a good blend of melody against tactfully loose performances that maintain control over their caustic leanings. The rhythm section is actually pretty impressive, and this is one of those rare cases where the drumming actually seems to play a huge role in driving the energy of the tracks (though of course all of the vocal layering and tradeoffs don't hurt, either). Most of the tracks run right around three minutes and keep the tempos rather punchy, though they do toss in a few slightly darker or slower/softer areas, and I might like to hear a bit more of that actually. Nice artwork and lyrics as well. It's a fairly simple layout printed on matte stock with handwritten lyrics that tend to be longer than average and tackle the kind of honest socio-political subject matter you'd expect, given a very sincere personal touch that I definitely respect.
Next is Sinaloa's "Footprints on Floorboards" CD. This is the second full-length from this bassless trio (using two guitars, drums, and a multi-vocal approach) out of Massachusetts, but I had never heard them before. For the most part this is similar in style to Reds, but I'd say it tends to lean more towards the indie side of things as far as the tempos and overall feel are concerned. Once again I dig the relatively dry vocals which are basically just yelled, they're not going for anything over the top there. And really the whole recording is pretty dry, which is actually quite well handled since I don't find myself missing the bass at all. There's a lot of cool dual guitar interaction that winds around nicely thanks to the panning in the mix, too. This stuff doesn't strike me as particularly melodic in most instances, however, so I certainly feel like the strongest tracks herein (see below for examples) are able to connect with the emotional elements of the lyrics much more directly using more dynamic approaches where light melody presents itself. Yet another nice looking layout printed entirely with a matte finish on this one, where the lyrics are also similar to those of Reds, but include heartfelt song descriptions for a general direction that comes a little more from an introspective sort of viewpoint—perhaps more "dramatic"?
Sinaloa "With Our Ears to the Soil"
Sinaloa "Words Through Wires"
All of the profits from the sale of this album are being donated to the Sheila Brodie Zetlan Breast Cancer Foundation, which is quite an admirable move. So definitely snag this one if you're into this particular style:
Last but not least is The Fiction with "Names". This is another New York act (and another trio) that actually features the guitarist of Reds. I had never heard these guys before either, but apparently this is their second and final full-length since they actually broke up during the latter chunk of 2005. Once more these jams are fairly similar in style to the above two discs, though the recording is definitely brighter and more balanced, so the overall punch of the material is a touch heavier (due in large part to the way the production really places emphasis on the basslines), and the vocals have a harsher edge on occasion as well. It's pretty insane what a difference that slightly crisper sound can make, and it definitely pays off on some level. These songs have a pretty good energy happening with most of the tempos, despite the dissonance going on in a lot of the riffing, but the band is not without their variances. Therefore, as with Sinaloa, I find that the more diverse tracks tend to hit much harder with this one (see "Reset", for example, which is easily the most impressive track of the disc with its somber atmosphere). Oh, and the lyrics are considerably more abstract and open-ended with this stuff as well.
Comments
wow, i was totally expecting you to tear into these discs. i actually enjoy the bulk of the waking records catalog but i know youre not too keen on this particular style. but im taken aback at your fair and well put review of these records. hats off to you. i wouldnt mind seeing more stuff like this on here. more discs like the about the fire style would be a good thing as well.
4.3.2006 | By chirs
sinaloa is pretty cool
4.4.2006 | By Anonymous