Face The PanicFrom Buffalo, NY comes this five piece who are trying to breath some new life into an old school style. They have been around only for a year but they've already released a demo and an EP titled "One For The Lifers" (Luchador Records), both of which have been well received from people all over and they've also had the pleasure of sharing the stage with hardcore stalwarts such as Hatebreed and Sick of It All and now they already have a full length under their belts! Another point of interest about these guys is that their members have spent time cutting their teeth in all kinds of bands you probably wouldn't expect; Everytime I Die, Herod, Slugfest, Lockjaw, Union and Dead To The World.
There are 12 tracks in all, 10 of them are originals by the band with a cover of Zero Tolerance's "Face The Panic", and the untitled track that closes off the album is a brief :49 second reggae outro, strange I know. As I stated in the paragraph above, these guys play a new but old school brand of hardcore, if that even makes sense. It is straight up punk/hardcore that maintains fast tempos, although there are plenty of mid tempo slow downs for breakdowns typical to this style, as well as the chance for the guitarist to throw in some metal-esque leads. Though it isn't totally prevalent there is an undercurrent of melody which is driven by driving basslines.
Even though most of the themes tackled lyrically are nothing new to the hardcore scene, they are varied enough to keep my interest. The types of issues covered are how punk rock/hardcore has been taken over by overly PC herbs and scene police ("The Reclamtion"), kids who try to impress people too much by being the most underground DIY kid ("Elitist Fool"), a vain and shallow girl ("My Human Tumor"), losing hope as your grow older ("Shell of A Man"), people who have no problem stepping on your back to get theirs ("Land of Opportunists"), racist people who love to hate, particularly white people as stated in the title of the song ("El Diablo Blanco"), the obligatory ‘pig' song ("Authority Pollutes"), how the corporations influence wars and political agendas ("Business As Usual"), and the song about being betrayed by a friend ("File Under Fiction").
I think this is the first time I've heard an album come out of Watchmen Studios which is a shame because this album sounds good as shit. The tone of the album is like a punch to the gut, it's mean and aggressive without sacrificing any quality. The guitar tone is nice and heavy and the leads sound pristine. The bass tone is in the background rumbling, bringing the drums together with the guitars. The drum tone is heavy as shit, the bass drum has a nice balance of punch and clickiness and the snare has great pop. The placement on the vocals is perfect.
When I first got this CD, I looked at the cover and was expecting a Rise Against or Strike Anywhere type band, obviously my assumption was totally off the mark. With that said, this glossy layout was designed well. The front cover has a raised fist with contrasted stripes and stars. The booklet is three panels and uses a yellow contrasted background with the lyrics printed in black, so it's easy on the eyes. The two panels on the front are used effectively, displaying a picture of each band member in a red silhouetted bar over the same yellow background that is used inside of the booklet. The quote inside of the tray art is absolutely my favorite part of the layout I'd say: "What happens when everything you hold sacred is co-opted by Madison Ave. And watered down to a piss poor imitation! What do you do when your entire culture has been raped on display in junk food and soft drink ads? Should we be thankful that the things we scoured the earth for like buried treasure are now conveniently available at malls nationwide? Punk rock is not a marketing strategy. It's time we take it back. The reclamation has begun.."
Rating: 3.7/5
Songs Worthy of Replay: My Human Tumor, Business As Usual and Land of Opportunists
Synopsis: It seems like everything I get or pick up from Reaper Records is quality and this is no different. Not a groundbreaking record musically or lyrically but they play this style good. There is no filler to be found here, they hit you off with 12 tracks of quality hardcore. If you enjoy listening to Agnostic Front or Sick of It All, you should like these guys.
As I always say, go to the band's MySpace to check out some songs and decide for yourself. And again, if you like it support the band and the label by making the purchase.