The Pugilistics Another Round! EP

The PUGILISITICS from Arizona follow their 2005 debut EP with a new four-song bout of tenacious old-school hardcore threaded around a melodic core. The songs vary in attack from mid-tempo to fast singalong anthem to ELVIS or MISFITS-inspired howlers with solid, pro musicianship weathering the twists, but patchy vocal delivery never quite finding its footing between or sometimes even within the songs. “Reflections” pounds with harshly barked and yelped vocals; “The Scene,” with its sung choruses, comes the closest in feel to a classic old punk anthem calling for scene participation; “Red Flag” is a mid-tempo boiler that brings to mind HVY DRT in the quirky line-to-line changes in the singing; “Stalkin” is a horror-punk crooner akin to GHOUL SQUAD or CALABRESE. No lyrics are provided, Winston Smith-inspired type cover collage, numbered and limited to 100 on white vinyl. A fun listen, but a few more rounds tightening up the recording, delivery, and presentation might deliver an actual KO.