Review / 200 Words Or Less
Down to Nothing / 50 Lions
Split

6131 (2008) Michael

Down to Nothing / 50 Lions – Split cover artwork
Down to Nothing / 50 Lions – Split — 6131, 2008

Richmond meets Melbourne on this split effort. Down to Nothing follows up last year's The Most while 50 Lions follows up an Australian-released full-length of their own. This split features each band contributing three new tracks.

Down to Nothing picks things up right where The Most left off. The band's sound has gotten significantly less punk-oriented and more straightforward and aggressive over the years. "Watered Down" is a pounding two-minutes of sing-along opportunities galore. "Shot Down" and "When My World Turns Cold" are short and to the point, but equally as gnarly.

50 Lions sets things off with the Boston-styled jam "The Realness" - think Guns Up!. "Searching" and "Love and War" are more of this flavor - big breakdowns and lots of gang vocals. While this is my first exposure to them, I've heard a ton of these kinds of bands from this country. Not really my thing, but I'm sure down under kids go bananas.

7.0 / 10Michael • August 3, 2008

Down to Nothing / 50 Lions – Split cover artwork
Down to Nothing / 50 Lions – Split — 6131, 2008

Recently-posted album reviews

Painkiller

The Great God Pan
Tzadik (2025)

Painkiller, the trio of John Zorn, Bill Laswell, and Mick Harris shows no signs of slowing down. The Great God Pan is their third full-length, since their reunion in 2024, and in many ways it is an unexpected offering. In keeping with their interests in the metaphysical realm, Painkiller find inspiration from the famed Arthur Machen horror novella. Here, the … Read more

Painkiller

The Equinox
Tzadik (2025)

Painkiller sees three absolute masters of extreme music join forces. John Zorn of Naked City and a billion other projects, Mick Harris who transcended from Napalm Death drummer to illbient guru with Scorn, and producer extraordinaire Bill Laswell. Their first two records, Guts of a Virgin and Buried Secrets are strange meditations traversing between free-jazz, grindcore and dub. Still hungry … Read more

Dauber

Falling Down
Dromedary Records, Recess (2025)

The lazy approach would be to call Dauber "ex-Screaming Females," but that barely scratches the surface. If I had to pick one band to namedrop a comparison to, it would be labelmates Night Court. They play a familiar style but with a lot of quirks that set it apart from the genre standard-bearers. It's driving and energetic -- more importantly, … Read more