A really solid guitar-bass-drum attack anchors these highly intelligent blasts by a new Chicago band arising out of the ashes of DIRECT DRIVE. The singing is gravelly as hell, the music fast yet tight, and the songs infectious. A sure winner.
Well, I liked DIE KREUZEN’s earlier cassette a lot, but even it didn’t quite prepare me for this outstanding slab of vinyl. All the noteworthy aspects of the former have been preserved, most notably the freneticism, but the band is tighter now and the recording is better. There’s a hint of the MEAT PUPPETS and CODE OF HONOR herein, but these Wisconsin guys are clearly originals.
This is good and sloppy. Youthful exuberance, chaotic instrumentation, and half-serious, half-silly themes are the main characteristics of NEGATIVE ELEMENT’s entertaining debut. The guitar could have been mixed a lot louder here, but I’ll bet they’re great live. Version Sound does it again.
Nine urgent, powerful punk anthems on this EP, all enriched by elaborate, carefully conceived instrumentation and fine lyrics. The production does seem a trifle muddy, but it hardly restrains the inventive compositions here, which very often combine the pop elements of “classical” punk with thrash energy. Atypical and strongly recommended.
The follow-up to Charred Remains. This compilation features 26 bands, including JFA, the CRUCIFUCKS, RED SCARE, MOURING NOISE, BATTALION OF SAINTS, MECHT MENSCH, RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED, SIN 34, NEGATIVE ELEMENT, the MOB, REBEL TRUTH, and on and on… You can’t go wrong here.
