|
From Delusions of
Adequacy:
Oh, this wasn't what I expected at all. From the cut-and-paste, black and white cover and
the feel of this 7", I was expecting something dire and punk-heavy. Instead, both The
Makeshift Conspiracy and Sourtooth are powerful, post-punk rock bands that really blew me
away. The sound here is very northwestern, ala Sleater-Kinney and similar grrl-rock bands,
but they are both unique in their own rights and suprisingly powerful.
The Makeshift Conspiracy contribute three songs, apparently their last as they say that
they broke up. "New Water Cycle" is a brilliant, moody rock song, heavy on the
bass with some deep and bitter female vocals. The backing vocals are perfect, higher and
contrasting nicely. The song moves along with a heavy-hand kind of feel, but it never gets
too fast or too out of control. It reminds me of some of the darker Pixies songs a bit.
"Fraidycat" is a little bit more upbeat, and the two female singers sing at the
same time. This one has a bit of a lo-fi Sleater-Kinney feel, heavy on the crunchy guitar
riffs and the vocals. But again, it has something of a dark underlying feel. "Exit
Nowhere" is probably the worst of the three, and the production seems to have
suffered here a bit, because the singer sounds much more out of tune. But it still has
that heavy-handed, slightly crunchy rock feel with darker overtones supplied by some
low-end bass lines. Very nice stuff.
Sourtooth contribute two songs, and while the production is a bit sketchy at times, the
sound is definitely not quite so ominous as The Makeshift Conspiracy. The alternating
boy/girl vocals, at times shouting back and forth on "Plead Ignorance" and at
times singing together is very cool. I love the bitter, riot-grrl sounding female vocals
that contrast with the punk-rock sounding boy vocals, but neither sound is really here.
Instead, this song is almost pop-rock, with more melodic guitar and some throbbing bass
lines, but it has a bitterness and in-your-face attitude as well. "Smoke European
Cigarettes" is definitely more punk sounding, the guitars a bit heavier, but punk
like older Sleater-Kinney style. The two singers alternate verses here, neither with quite
the emotional punch they had on the first track but with a heavier feel. There's even a
bit of a retro rock feel here, especially when the male singer takes over. Cool, crunchy
stuff from another band I haven't been introduced to before, and apparently the whole band
goes by their last names only.
Of the two bands, I'm most excited about The Makeshift Conspiracy and their contributions.
While Sourtooth have a more melodic and driving sound, and the dual boy/girl vocals are
very cool, The Makeshift Conspiracy exude a darker ambience that really gets to me. Both
bands are excellent, despite something of a lo-fi feel. This is one more reason why you
can't judge an album by its cover. Speaking of the cover, this is the first 7" I've
seen that prints band photos and band information on the inside of the cover, all slick
and glossy. -Matt
|