Labels: The Militia Group
Review by: Kunal Nandi
Ooh spunky! The sound of young American males in that tricky period betwixt teen hedonism and adult frustration, channelled through overheating guitar amps and knackered drum skins. This band have a name so bad, it could cause an international incident, or even worse, put me off listening to the bastards in the first place. Also, no-one in the band is called Torrance (neither in the fore- nor the surname) so I can’t even accuse the bass-player or whoever of being an egotistical twat, like you perhaps could with The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, or Jools Holland’s Rhythm and Blues Band. Also also, I am reminded of Tora Tora Tora, the 3-hour war drama about Pearl Harbour, an ugly episode in human history which I”d rather have not seen recreated for the purposes of temporary gratification, although it was a damn sight better than the recent travesty of a film version.
But enough about how shite Ben Affleck is (apart from when he was in Mallrats “” “Call me Donnie”¦ ugh!”), and more about this fairly fine record which positively reinstates my faith in bands that DO take cues from other bands and are NOT afraid to show it. The bands I refer to are At The Drive-In and”¦ well, that’s pretty much it I suppose. Bit of Fugazi in the darker moments maybe, bit of Pretty Girls Make Graves in the twistiness of the high guitar lines, but mostly it’s heads-down wham bam thank you ma’am punk “n’ roll nonsense. The vocals are a sticking point though. There’s no doubt that the guy is giving his all, but he simply doesn’t have much to give. A wavering nasal yelp that’s Johnny Rotten at the best of times, plain-old annoying at the worst. Still, a good record, though not quite a classic.