Stay Lost – Blinded
Heroes are supposed to go out in a blaze of glory. Every hard-rock band tries to create an atmosphere of reckless, “whatever may come, may come” abandon. Still, few succeed in sounding genuinely convincing.
This is the reason, maybe, why so many stories of excess and weird behaviour are spread like business cards by publicists and marketing people. Without the energy, the personality, and/or a worldview that does not coincide with the norm, these musicians would pass as geography teachers.
Stay Lost’s Blinded sounds like a band attempting to push themselves to the very edge of their boundaries. This is screamo that verges, frankly, on the edge of noise, yet keeps its toes dipped enough in calm waters to make this not only bearable but worthy of repeat listens. Bands struggle to find a song that represents their sound and philosophy. Stay Lost achieved this easily with this one.
GraveSpitter – Written For The Small Screen
There were kids across the world who loved gangsta rap who created their own crews of tough guys and cosplayed their way into aggressive gang violence sprinkled with rap. On the other hand, hardcore punk had a similar effect with seemingly every musician in this genre, across the known world, pretending to be a tough guy ready to beat anyone up just for the thrill of it. Modern music is, often, fantasy roleplaying.
Sure, things can get absurd, and, rarely, stupidly violent. But, doesn’t any gathering of people risk heading that way? As a lifelong football fan, I am convinced that the reason why terraces and hooligans are permitted and even encouraged is so that these people don’t take their frustrations elsewhere out in the world.
With that in mind, hearing punishing music that sounds like setting fire to villages at night is the kind of fantasy some of us, ourselves included, need. The sludgy riffing provided by punk group GraveSpitter checks those boxes. Written For The Small Screen sounds like the sound most normal people will hear in their heads when frustrated with the world around them. Fortunately, for most folks that, and in the music, is where the aggression stays.
