Here's some of that good ol’ raw punk that was en vogue a few years ago. You know, those salad days before everyone started going gaga for the gothic, post-punk, all-weird-all-the-time trend that’s hot right now. (Personally, I like both styles quite a bit so I’ve got no complaints. I’m just having some fun here.) While the intro shows a band capable of crafting tight song structures and playing skillfully, the rest of this four song red cassette is noisy, blown-out hardcore in the vein of No Power. Discordant vocals buried amidst a feedback wave of D-beaten low end and cacophonous guitars; this shit bangs you over the head like a Dusty Rhodes atomic elbow dropping from the heavens. It’s unsettling and youthful, and in the true spirit of punk.
As for the packaging, it’s nicer than a lot of demos that come across my desk. The J-card is pro-printed glossy cardstock rather than photocopied paper. And I like the artwork because it’s not immediately revealing. It’s simplistic but imaginative in a way that makes me think “mysterious guy” or, like, Synthetic ID rather than crust punk. Thankfully punk is still a genre in which tangible items are the preferred format. As someone who still makes zines with scissors and glue stick I'd never throw shade at those working within the budgetary constraints of DIY, but it’s really nice to see labels like Dead Tank putting in the extra effort to have good-looking product.
