Reviews

Bankrupt Studios

Bombvest Erratic CD

Hardcore is a bit of a chimera at the moment, taking on many shapes and a sort of “I’ll know it when I hear it” attitude. While Buffalo’s BOMBVEST label themselves hardcore, the truth is a little more interesting. I hear a lot of ’90s and ’00s noise rock influence, especially along the lines of the mighty CRAW from back in the heyday of the genre. The opening bass line, punctuated by the drums on a syncopated beat, and the overall abandon with which the band explores melodic and rhythmic ideas reads as a multi-genre affair. That’s what makes this EP interesting, the composition from song to song bobbing and weaving through influences and even peppering in some moments of pop hooks as well (I mean that as a compliment, fear not). What I’m less sold on is the metallic hardcore vocals. With everything else going on, I wanted something a little more out of the ordinary. The vocals are capable, but not breaking any new ground. They’re also far ahead in the forefront, when I wish they would sit more in the mix. It’s a shame, because I think the building blocks here are really interesting and with a more varied and off-the-wall vocal approach I’d be wanting to revisit the material frequently.

Indentured Resistance Etiquette CD

The one thing that sticks out about this EP is the production value. It sounds like they spent a lot of time and possibly money on this recording. That isn’t a slight, either. From a production standpoint, this is very pleasing to the ears. As for the songs themselves, it’s kind of hard to pin down an accurate description because calling this “standard punk” would be a disservice to the work put in here. Lyrically, though…that’s when they lost me. There’s a song about “the quarantine cruise line” and a song called “Karen” about…yup, you guessed it…a “Karen.” I mean, who am I to judge one’s lyrical content, I just don’t know if songs like these will age well is all.