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Okay, so here is the question that I have to ask: If something
sounds a lot like a beloved band, does that make it inherently
good? It isn't a question of nostalgia or of a blatant copycat
rip-off artist, more of the allusion presented, whether it is
intentional or not. I guess my answer depends on how well they
pull it off, because a lot of bands might rely on the sound rather
than funnel the influence. In the case of Blood Vessels,
the answer to the question "is it successful?" is: Hell
yes!
I don't know, maybe it is nostalgia from some short lived bands,
but I can not stop listening to this album. It sounds remarkably
like a combination of Minor Threat and Operation Ivy,
but somehow it is all its own. Songs from this album could easily
fit in on those other records; whether it be "So Long"
on the former or "Escape From My Brain" on the latter,
either would blend seamlessly in with those perfect recordings.
Nailing the ambiance from track one, Blood Vessels succeed in
creating the feel from that era, with the low-fi garage hardcore-punk,
pristine enough to be on a CD, but with the grit like it was pulled
from a tape-deck. Please know that I am not knocking the production,
in fact, I find it refreshing in our overly produced world. It
strikes me as some sort of perverse backwards simile; the beauty
lies in the rough, not the jewels surrounding. All the more for
that I thank the band for staying true to a sound, and capturing
it to a "T".
While not epic in any sense, this album just plain does it for
me, back to front good material laid on great tracks that resonate
with the appropriate attitude. No presumptions, no disdain, only
the love of the music and the need not to explain anything because
it just is. Like it used to be. Like it should be. This record
won't change the world or ultimately change me, but what it has
given me is hope that those ideals from the salad days of punk
are not forgotten, and occasionally someone will come along and
get it right. So listen well because these recordings are few
and far between.
-bishop
Track listing:
1) Catholic Zombies
2) Escape From My Brain
3) Not Funny
4) So Long
5) When You're Young
6) Primal Urge
7) Don't Care
8) Hell Rocket
9) White Knuckle Grip
10) Complacency
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