Hardcore, lets admit, has
kind of gotten a bit stale over the years, every band has clear cut influences
and many draw from a single band so heavily that what you get in the end is not
as much a creative re-visioning of a movement or a grouping of bands, but a
mini-version of a band that probably did it better in the first place. Every
once in a while a band comes along that have a unique tone and voice, Media
Blitz is one of these bands. Probably my favorite aspect of this album are the
ripping solos that are littered throughout the LP. Punk has been severly
lacking some intricate solos; I say less breakdowns, more solos. Or fuck it…..
breakdown-solos it doesn’t matter. MB’s guitarist isn’t just playing as fast as
he can either, his solo’s are very well written, and I have seen them live and
can tell you that he nails them live.
Aside from the guitarwork the
most notable feature of Media Blitz are the vocals. Completely snotty and
pissed vocals lay over the tracks. Hardcore should sound pissed and Media Blitz
definitely achieves that goal. The songs still however manage to have an almost
melodic sense, the riffs are very catchy and get stuck in my head. Media Blitz
merge influences from all over the place, into a great unified sound. While
they aren’t in any sense re-inventing the wheel, they for sure don’t sound like
a carbon-copy replication of any one band I have ever heard.
With 12 tracks the album is
perfect length, no single track clocking at more than 2 minutes and change
(most staying under 2) the album isn’t long enough to get boring, and isn’t
short enough to leaving you bummed that it is over. I would have to say that
the only criticism I can think of the record is that the vocals are a bit loud
and tend to overwhelm the recording. Personally I like vocal mixes to be a bit
more buried, but it isn’t either really a bad thing as I think I may be in the
minority when it comes to that preference.
Do yourself a favor and check out Media Blitz by downloading the album, buying the record and see them on their upcoming summer tour!
Do yourself a favor and check out Media Blitz by downloading the album, buying the record and see them on their upcoming summer tour!
