Anchoress gets old-school in Set Sail
Set Sail (Independent)
There’s a good reason for all the current blog buzz surrounding Off!: kids who were shitting their diapers when Blink-182 first started making booby jokes have suddenly begun to discover old-school punk. And by old-school, we’re not talking Green Day, but instead the guys who were ripping up the North American underground back when Ronald Reagan was public enemy number one.
The latest proof that everything old eventually becomes cool again is Set Sail, which doesn’t come on like a record as much as a nuclear-strength napalm bomb. Forget pleasantries: the quartet simply plugs in and then unleashes the hailstorm, with the opening track, “Murder in the Sky Over Burnaby”, roaring over the finish line in 28 punishing seconds. From the Chicago-style hardcore of “Coral Bones” to the plastic-explosives metal-punk of “Apocalunatics”, this is powerful stuff, with admirably inventive guitar work by Keenan Federico anchored by the solid back-end work of drummer Chris Lennox-Aasen and bassist Ricky Castanedo.
Unlike many of the pioneers that got all this started in the ’80s, Anchoress doesn’t limit its lyrical targets to the government, war, religion, and parents who totally refuse to get their teenagers a Pepsi. The skronky “She-Devil” has frothing-at-the-mouth singer Rob Hoover training his sights on chicks who are on a mission to out-slut Sasha Grey, while the chugging “Zombies on a Plane” will be pretty much self-explanatory to anyone familiar with the Misfits and George A. Romero. It all adds up to a top-notch first effort, which, thank you very much, will fit in perfectly on a playlist between Black Flag and Articles of Faith.
Comments
2 Comments
Sick of bad reviews
May 1, 2011 at 10:01pm
This is one of the the worst reviews I have read In a very long time. Trying to devalue the taste of previous generations musical introductions to "Punk Rock" by stating the relevance of Black Flag over Blink 182. Give me a break, The musical stylings of this Anchoress album is of direct Influence of the music that ad heres to the generation of popular music now. Songs like She-Devil obviously drawing from The Gallows Post Hardcore pop twang. To the song Coral Bones which is very dry attempt at the genre of positive hardcore that bands like Have Heart and even local legends Blue Monday helped to stamp out mixed with sad attempts at Southern rock riffs.... This album all be it well done, is nothing close to new and the person reviewing it seemed very desperate to find individuality out of it, and went as far as to make efforts of stating the lyrical dynamics didn't just stick to war, politics, or pre teens bitching about bad parenting. There is a time and place for all, from the black flags of the world, Gorilla Biscuits, to Have Hearts and even Blink 182's. Try reviewing this album for what it is with out comparing it so drastically to its predecessors and tell me if it really does stand up and deserve any place in a play list
I found it to be forgettable, and very inflated with obvious influences and with little efforts in hiding it or branching away from it.
It's dry and at best catchy in the I've already heard this hook in a song before, on this album or someone else's.
With that being said I hope they don't give up on what there doing. They have the talent in there playing, but I would hope they would use it a little more creatively
in any future efforts and maybe give a go at doing something different. Influences are very pertinent to making a band who they are, but each member is there to make a band something memorable and new.
Doucher
May 14, 2011 at 8:41am
Okay, this is aimed at the previous comment! You are a perfect example of somebody who takes the fun out music.This band, writing songs about zombies, demons on highways, and super-sluts, is NOT taking themselves seriously. You on the other hand seem like you have more vested in music than the people writing it, and this quality I find pitiful.
In short, grow up.
Keep up or keep out.