Labels: self released
Review by: Alex Hannan
This ain’t the OBJECTORZ’ first time at the rodeo, and their experience is reflected in a quality “demonstration cassette” – four whistleable punk rock tunes, unpretentiously presented. It’s got a foot each in two generations of melodic punk, and doesn’t particularly draw on members’ previous that I know of, instead choosing a coherent style and staying faithful to it.
On one hand it’s clearly made by people who listen to a broad range of late 70’s guitar music rather than taking a scorched-earth punk approach – you can hear tinges from hard rock, pub rock, and power pop as well as a circa-1980 STIFF LITTLE FINGERS feel. They’re not afraid of a good lead guitar line, a cleverly layered but economical arrangement, or a chunky, chuggy guitar part. It conjures up echoes of that wave of bands who’d been playing around the pubs a few years before punk broke and brought those chops to the table when they started spiking their hair.
On the other hand, though, the band that keep nagging at me during the first song and take a bit of head-scratching to pin down are more recent – Manchester’s THE LEIF ERICSSON. They’re my reference because of where I happened to be as SNUFF / LEATHERFACE influences trickled down into more meat and potatoes melodic punk – I’m sure folk from different parts of the country will have their own comparison.
The OBJECTORZ’ lyrics and delivery remind me of this nineties era, or a more power-pop tradition generally; times when there was a swell of songwriting growing out of personal issues rather than politics. It takes a strong and individual songwriter to make me care about that kind of material, to write a “Springtime”, a “Sweet dreams” or a “Blown away”, and the risk when it’s not done well is to rely on commonplaces. The lyrics, for me, are where the OBJECTORZ could step up their game. They’ve got tunes for days and that will get them a long way – would love to see them live – but a bit more lyrical interest could potentially take it all to the next level and have me digging out their records twenty years down the line…