Diamine Ancient Riffs LP
DIAMINE is a Washington, DC three-piece made up of musicians from CAPITOL CITY DUSTERS, SEVERIN, and Florida’s DISCOUNT (a band fronted by Alison Mosshart, later of some band called the KILLS). Their debut LP Ancient Riffs mostly reads as mid-tempo alternative rock with personal lyrics delivered by a singer who sounds like a worn-down B.A. from SLOPPY SECONDS. Track seven, “Either/Or,” was the only one that I thought showed any bite. While some bands use “post-punk” to describe a distinct sonic signature—anxious tones, driving bass lines, sharp edges—others use it to mark what ex-punks did next. Ancient Riffs lands in the latter camp, and not necessarily in the best way. Coming of age in DC in the ’90s meant navigating wave after wave of projects built around ex-members of great bands—most of whom had lost whatever made those earlier bands compelling. DIAMINE sounds like one of those projects: the kind of group you might accidentally catch while waiting for the headliner. Recommended for friends of people who work at Dischord.