Search - Racebannon :: First There Was the Emptiness

...I feel obliged seeing as no one else has reviewed it...wh

OMNIGOSS | UK | 05/23/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...I was going to wait until I've listened to it enough times before I actually reviewed it as I truly respect these guys work (and friended them on myspace...which I rarely do for music...eee) but how would you describe their music? Well this is what they said about themselves and I'll add in what I think about this album:



"Midway between a deleted scene from River's Edge and the resurrection of Frankenstein to unleash havoc upon the villagers that put him under, the Racebannon sound is one of many disparate influences that blend seamlessly into one lethal cocktail of hatred and aggression, draped in a cerecloth of pure molten rock that is as unforgiving as it is pulse-quickening. Indie rock? No. Metal? No. Hardcore? No. Noise core? No. Racebannon? Yes. It really is that simple. Hesh enough for any mosh pit, yet cerebral enough for the art palate, Racebannon attack with the heave and punch the endtimes dictate while still keeping things fresh and original. Love or hate, there is no ignoring the 12 guage barrage of riffs, screams, and drums."



...and is this review accurate for this album? Yes; Racebanon have the ability to combine different stylings of music that create agression. angst and dark energy all at the same time; what's more I must add that I enjoy how far back in the mix the vocals have been put giving it a poor production punk feel...which works amazingly...let me give some examples of tracks and the formulas they have used...



Lingers in her lungs: Starting with a sampling with a man claiming his personal views that all people who make punk rock should be killed with the odd humming in the background turning into a distorted and dissonant riff and after repeated two times (with a guitar bridge in between) there's a quick drum break followed by the singer (with an amazingly versatile voice) singing in a croaked and gargled manner...but because the vocals are far back in the mix they don't drown out the sound in the slightest...if anything the instrumentals have more of a potential to do this...this track though is by far the best example of their agression...



...however tracks like "Yr test scores don't speak for themselves" that start with very progressive electronic and dark instrumentals show this band is more then just a one off bad production band...



...I'm struggling to think of what else to say on this album but this is recommended to avid listeners that aren't frightened by variety (unlike some of the people I reccomeneded this too...pfft)..."