I think one of the more notable and interesting thing about the punk scene of the past 10 years or so is how few bands seem to have fully digested their influences. Whether you see it as a good or a bad thing, it’s hard to deny the fact that so many bands these days are started with the goal of sounding like one particular band or record or (only slightly better) rudimentary combinations of “X meets Y.” I think that one of the main reasons why the debut full-length from Portland’s Deathcharge sticks out so much is that it’s nearly impossible to pin the band down with just one or two band comparisons. While you can certainly hear influences–Motorhead’s heavy, rhythmic chugging, Discharge’s unmistakable guitar sound, the riffiness of Kill ‘Em All-era Metallica, the dark vocal melodies of early Psychedelic Furs and first-gen goth rock like Bauhaus and Christian Death–none of those influences predominates here. Instead, Deathcharge just sound like Deathcharge.
Though the band released an EP way back in 2006, Love Was Born to an Early Grave is the first I’ve heard from them. I’d guess that they spent the intervening five years honing and perfecting their sound, systematically purging it of anything that seemed overly familiar or stock. What they were left with is simply one of the most phenomenal LPs I’ve heard this year. There are a lot of former crusties “going goth” (see Richmond’s Lost Tribe, for instance), but Deathcharge is so much more than that. This is just dark, gripping rock music made by punks.
All of the tracks on this record are untitled, so it’s hard to talk about particular songs, but I have two I want to talk about specifically. The second track (download here) is perhaps the goth-iest moment on the LP, beginning with a stark, tom-heavy intro that instantly recalls Bauhaus. Once it gets into the chorus part, the drums drop into the unmistakable beat from Joy Division’s “Transmission,” but this isn’t a rip-off… the guitars are atmospheric and shimmery, but they’re definitely doing their own thing. Then when they go back into that punk as fuck riff all of my mosh buttons get hit simultaneously. Pure genius! My favorite track, though, is the 4th one (download here). It begins with a gnarly as fuck riff that sounds like it could have come right off of the first Inepsy LP, but then out of nowhere comes one of the most killer leads I’ve ever heard… I’m not even sure whether it’s a synth or just a heavily effect-laden guitar, but that little guitar line has been stuck in my head for several months and it shows no sign of dislodging itself any time soon.
These are, however, just two isolated moments from this monument of an LP. It gets way more raging and it gets way more dark, and there are surprising little twists and turns buried all over this thing. I have no doubt that once word spreads about this record you are going to be seeing it on a lot of year-end lists, so grab it now before it’s too late. I’m not sure about pressing info, but it was pretty darn hard to acquire my distro copies and I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get any more.
Click here to buy Love Was Born to an Early Death from Sorry State
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