The Neon HookersThese guys are a five piece and hail from Hull, Massachusetts. They play a brand of rock influenced hardcore akin to The Suicide File. I have no knowledge of any previous releases from these guys, but I'm sure they've released some demos along the way. For the record, I would like to state that this band has one of the best names ever, fucking pure gold, it's definitely not a name that you would associate hardcore with.
I've heard some off the wall comparisons being made to this band, going as far to say that they sound like Everytime I Die. I have no idea where the fuck that came from because these guys don't sound anything like them, except maybe the vocalist because he's got the spastic style, but it actually reminds me of Mitch from Forever I Burn more than anything. Now, The Suicide File is a little more appropriate. But references and comparisons aside, these guys have a sound that is pretty refreshing. They definitely have a rocked out feeling in their songs but at the same token, sound completely hardcore, and on top of that, have a vocalist that would fit in with most metalcore outfits.
Ian Hickey (vocalist) paints a vivid picture of life by showing how depressing and hateful life is in his lyrics. From "Be Careful What You Wish For", "A youth raised on ritalin. We destroyed this world and bled it dry. We are the youth that's given up. We destroyed this world and bled it dry. And God himself will look back at the human race and spit on us all." Completely off topic, but the song title "Say Cheese and Die!" totally reminded me of the book from the Goosebumps series.
This was recorded at the notorious Outpost by Jim Siegel, which would explain why I have far more good to say than bad about this release's production quality. Everything got the proper attention in the mix, nothing too low or high. The vocals are right in there battling the music for face time, in a good way of course. The bass tone has a nice treble tone to it, with just enough low end presence to keep me happy. The guitar has a nice solid crunch to the tone. No complaints here whatsoever.
Just as with the name, the layout doesn't give you the impression that this is a hardcore release, it kind of looks like something a metalcore or prog band would use. But anyway, this shit is dope. The bulk of the layout is based around a city skyline (somewhere in MA I would assume?) with contrasted extraterrestrial images in the sky (a pyramid, a circular object that looks like the star gate,etc.,). When you fold out the booklet, it expands the skyline and also shows a dark shadowy figure walking on the sidewalk. Very cool layout concept when taking the title of the EP into consideration, "Calling All Creeps!" You don't have to from this planet to be a creep, know what I'm saying? The lyrics are displayed in a slanted fashion over more ET contrasted images, with a grey alien hand stopping a stream of bullets Matrix style. I really enjoyed this one.
Rating: 4/5
Songs Worthy of Replay: Say Cheese and Die!, Deep Trouble, Let's Get Invisible
Thesis: This is some quality rocked out hardcore with high pitched scream vocals that are more likely to be found on a crushing metalcore album. The layout is fantastic, the production quality is top notch. Their isn't a reason that you shouldn't pick this up or at least give these guy's a listen.