Funeral Parade - Self-Titled

FUNERAL PARADE (Portland, OR) play spot-on early-80's UK style dark punk rock. tight, straight-forward and driving rhythm section, catchy lead riffs, and an overall sound that captures the essence of an entire era. this is a cassette release, and it's the perfect medium. i'm actually finding myself speechless over how good this is.

focusing on the horrors of our social reality rather than expounding literary praise (and with the Blinko-esque artwork, might i add), this band plays what, to me, is deathrock. like, with the clouds rolling over the moon - which is currently visible from my window - i just want to turn off the light in my room right now and get well-dressed and dance.

i really wish i would have written "For You". i just heard this demo for the first time about ten days ago, and i can already assure you that this track - hell, the whole tape, really - is timeless. a modern-day classic. how rare is that? the rumor mill has it that they've already disbanded. i really hope that for the sake of all us cold-hearted kids out there this isn't true, because if so, then the universe is missing out on something truly special. don't pass on this. it's genuine and it is very, very beautiful.

last.fm link in the post's title.

White Lung - It's The Evil

Vancouver's own 3/4 lady-garage-punk-quartet.

apologies, all. i've been slacking on this blog front lately. i promise that a three-fer is on the way. maybe older/timeless records that i think go unnoticed? but onto this review:

i may be alone in this, but i'm totally stoked on/excited for this band to be in existence. It's The Evil is an awesome record from front to back. no lulls and little filler. it's just full force; aggressive, but with a hint of that rebellious apathy that i find endlessly appealing, especially in stage presence.

basically, this act is a way better version of the YEAH YEAH YEAHS. dancey but moshable punk rock. "raw" and "grungy", but not in the commonly understood sense of the terms. the emotion and "rawness" in presentation is palpable. you can't help but feel it bursting through your speakers. "grungy" in a rock-and-roll sense, but no fuzzy distortion. guitar(s) are crisp and clean, but the amount of gain is ear-piercing. same with the drums. these kids play their instruments hard.

vocally, Mish Way is whiny and wavy, but not in a nauseating or obnoxious way. her vocal style is very well balanced, especially with regards to the flow of the album. a good mix of yelling, screaming, singing, and snottiness. i hate to say it, because it seems all too obvious, but she honestly does remind of of Kathleen Hanna (BIKINI KILL) with the way she enunciates certain words in a mocking-like fashion. you know what i'm talking about. that being said, i wouldn't call WHITE LUNG a riot grrl band. which, incidentally, i think is for the better. (sorry to burst your bubble, second-wavers.) but i digress.

the bass has a distinct fender jazz sound with an excellent tone that blends well with the rest of the band, but stands out when it should/needs to. the cymbals sound like they're shattering to pieces every time they're hit. the snare is punching you in the throat. the guitar plays loud as fuck open chords and dizzying/hypnotic lead parts, but crystal clear and also (somehow) not overpowering. tracks like Viva La Rat, Shoot, and Like Dad (which are my three favorites on the albummm) feature what i find to be the raddest of lead riffs that help define the band. i also think the affect it has on the listener compliments the artwork and vice-versa. a lot of that good old fashioned 16th note stuff going on all around, but they can seemingly stop on a dime. well done.

favvsies: Viva La Rat, Two Seen, Shoot, Like Dad. (Atlanta gets a shout-out too for being hella catchy.)

so yeah, these folks are all over the interwebs: tumblr in the title, myspace, facebook, Deranged Records.

someone book them a show in Chicago. like, maybe that RVIVR/THIS IS MY FIST one in September?

MORE TO COME. I SVVEARRR.

As We Draw - Lines Breaking Circles

punk inspired post-metal from France. some would simply collapse the aforementioned genres into "post-hardcore", and there would be a degree of validity to that. however, in an effort to paint a clearer picture, i'd say these guys are more along the lines of CELESTE, in that no one genre easily defines their sound. it's heavy, it's really angry and screamy, and no song breaches the 7 minute mark. it's an especially impressive effort considering it is their debut release. LP packaging looks amazing. seriously considering adding it to my collection, as the fizzle and pops would accompany the feel of this album quite nicely. includes lyrics that elaborate on their relation to the artwork.

the most interesting aspect(s) of this album - beyond the awesome vinyl format/package - are the vocals and the guitar tones. the vocals have somewhat of a CIRCLE TAKES THE SQUARE pattern to them. not necessarily call-and-response style, but pretty evenly divided and often overlapping scratchy skramz with guttural/more enunciated yells. as for the guitars, they lay down quite an atmospheric sound while remaining really crisp and clear.

i think they probably have a plethora of peddles/effects to aid in this, because they certainly don't rely on heavy, down-tuned chords or crushing distortion. granted, my guitar knowledge is limited (and i'm too lazy/not invested enough to look through pictures), but it sounds like a Gibson SG to me. i don't know how helpful that is to you, the reader, but it makes sense to me so i'm going with it. there's a lot of tapping riffs and hallway/reverb stuff going on, but when they want to make it more driving AWD does just fine. heavily distorted, metallic yet crusty bass aids in these efforts as well.

rhythmically, there are no abrupt shifts in either time signature or tempo, which i find suits this overall style of music better. it finds other ways of staying interesting, though. mostly through subtle snare taps, dynamic changes (lots), and ear piercing cymbal crashes. there's also occasional group vocals and group singing, which being as partial to classic hardcore as i am, i enjoy quite a bit. and it definitely helps keep this record unique and relatively unpredictable. i kind of get bored sometimes listening to sludge or post-metal where the vocals have one sound/style/technique that persists throughout.

in short, AWD has undoubtedly made an indelible mark on this recently popularized sound, and will probably only continue to get better and gain huge recognition worldwide. this isn't one of those bands you here, listen to for a month and then occasionally name drop. they're not a reference point, they're damn good. an instant classic that waaaay more people should be getting into.

favorite tracks: Sin of Addiction, Shield, Fault Lines, Draft, Scum of the Earth.

last.fm here and myspace link in the post title.

CAN YOU DIG IT?!