Bleak Track |
According to their promo handout, Bleak Track’s debut EP offers “a gloomy marriage of death punk and noisewave.” If this scares you off, don’t be too worried. They’ve got plenty of smooth melody, combined with enough roughness to keep things interesting. Bleak Track is the love child of Exene Cervenka and Robert Smith, with Siouxie Sioux and Lydia Lunch duking it out for a shot at the Evil Fairy Queen role. In a world of hand-stapled-to-forehead bands, Bleak Track would rather jam that staple through someone else’s hand. They’ve spiced up their angst with a good bit of aggro, creating a mix which is tuneful without being tepid. Bleak Track pays homage to their punk roots by keeping everything short and to the point. At 4’32”, “fear to follow” is the longest track ... and it seems positively indulgent next to tightly wound tracks like “the letter” and “decomposing love.” Jason Nipple deserves much of the credit here. His percussion is fast and furious: he doesn’t play his kit so much as he attacks it. Dave Ed provides a solid and steady thump which gives the proper support for Melody Bleak’s strong and sexy voice. They also give a nod to experimental acts, with their closing song, “Terrible.” This brief tune consists of various and sundry weird noises which don’t really go anywhere. It’s an unnecessary appendage, in this reviewer’s humble opinion. I’d rather hear another 2 minutes of adrenaline-charged power chords; why toy with a formula which has worked so well for so many others? Starting to Dream has a more successful use of Strange Effects; they open with weirdness, then get right back down to the business at hand. Three people playing in 4/4 time... and singing songs which are both hummable and pogo-able. How can you go wrong? Don’t be a shmuck: buy this CD. 1. the letter Melody Bleak: guitars, bass, keys, vox |