Russ Hockenbury
07/04/06, 05:05 PM
Stabbed In Back – A Portrait of Noise
Release Date: July 18, 2006
Label: Basement Records
Writing about music for as many years as I have, you build up a fair amount of contacts. Some of those contacts become closer than others. A few I might even go so far as to call my friends. In the critic game, having contacts as friends can be a conflict of interest. The above being said, Chuck from Basement Records is my friend. However, he knows I’m not afraid to take a dump on one of his bands, as unfriendly as that may sound. The good news for Chuck (this time around), is that I really enjoy the four song EP from his latest signing Stabbed In Back.
Featuring ex-members of the The Lillingtons, the Albuquerque four-piece play fast-paced punk rock that harkens back to the era when fast-paced punk rock actually meant something. A Portrait of Noise is far from the hook-laden bounce played by cute boys in tight jeans that young punks are used to these days. Instead, it’s eleven minutes of grimy fun you won’t feel less cool for after listening to. That’s not to say the men in Stabbed In Back can’t write a memorable track. They do that just fine, penning successful guitar-driven hooks on each of Noise’s tracks.
Vocalist Kendal Fortson smoker’s lunged style resembles the work of the The Lawrence Arms’ own acidic-voiced talent, Brendan Kelly. For corroborating evidence, look no further than the ominous, “Everything Went Black”. Fortson’s voice is far from distinct of Kelly’s or any of the Oi punks he grew up idolizing, but it’s the soul of his band and he uses the familiar weapon to maximum capability.
Chuck done good.
For a good time, call Michelle ______: “Bathroom Stall Poetry”
No $50 haircuts here: The Lawrence Arms, A Radio With Guts, Pennywise
Release Date: July 18, 2006
Label: Basement Records
Writing about music for as many years as I have, you build up a fair amount of contacts. Some of those contacts become closer than others. A few I might even go so far as to call my friends. In the critic game, having contacts as friends can be a conflict of interest. The above being said, Chuck from Basement Records is my friend. However, he knows I’m not afraid to take a dump on one of his bands, as unfriendly as that may sound. The good news for Chuck (this time around), is that I really enjoy the four song EP from his latest signing Stabbed In Back.
Featuring ex-members of the The Lillingtons, the Albuquerque four-piece play fast-paced punk rock that harkens back to the era when fast-paced punk rock actually meant something. A Portrait of Noise is far from the hook-laden bounce played by cute boys in tight jeans that young punks are used to these days. Instead, it’s eleven minutes of grimy fun you won’t feel less cool for after listening to. That’s not to say the men in Stabbed In Back can’t write a memorable track. They do that just fine, penning successful guitar-driven hooks on each of Noise’s tracks.
Vocalist Kendal Fortson smoker’s lunged style resembles the work of the The Lawrence Arms’ own acidic-voiced talent, Brendan Kelly. For corroborating evidence, look no further than the ominous, “Everything Went Black”. Fortson’s voice is far from distinct of Kelly’s or any of the Oi punks he grew up idolizing, but it’s the soul of his band and he uses the familiar weapon to maximum capability.
Chuck done good.
For a good time, call Michelle ______: “Bathroom Stall Poetry”
No $50 haircuts here: The Lawrence Arms, A Radio With Guts, Pennywise