Signed to Dischord, the legendary DC punk label of perpetually angry Fugazi/Minor Threat mainman Ian MacKaye, Deathfix seek to bring a classic-rock feel to a label best associated with releasing straight-edge, hardcore and riot grrl releases from the likes of Jawbox and Rites of Spring.
Ex-Fugazi drummer Branden Canty and former singer-songwriter and DJ Rich Morel met as part of Bob Mould’s touring band yet Deathfix, their new joint project, betrays little trace of either brutal post-hardcore or acoustic guitar laments. Instead they’re animated by the spirit of ’72, whipping between propulsive funk, open-armed glam-rock and a sense of inherent preposterous that makes a mockery of their overly serious moniker.
‘Low Lying Dreams’ is dominated by Morel’s Mark Lanegan worthy croak and ‘Hospital’ racks up a bodycount Nick Cave would be proud of but they’re preceded by ‘Better than Bad’ which packs gently-chugging riffs and expansive drumming into a Foo Fighters-esque anthem that crams in more hooks than a Japanese whaling ship.
Elsewhere, the rampant surrealism of the eight minute ‘Dali’s House’ pokes fun at LCD Soundsystem, claiming ‘I wish I was James Murphy’s house because you can steal ideas and Daft Punk is always playing there’ whilst rattling off a list of icons and their abodes over a playful funk rhythm.
With multi-instrumentalists Mark Cisneros and Devin Ocampo holding down the rhythm section Canty and Morel are free to trade riffs, lines and ideas at such a rapid rate that there’s little in the way of a coherent thread to hold the seven tracks of their debut mini-album together but when they gauge the lightness of touch just right - as on the excellent ‘Mind Control’ – Deathfix are proof that sometimes all that’s needed is to kick back with a couple of guitars and a bunch of friends to craft something catchy, likeable and fun.
7
Max Sefton
No comments:
Post a Comment