Rotterdam 3 piece Accelerators have been doing the rounds a while and anyone who’s familiar with the underground mainland scene will definitely know the name. They’ve done a split with the ever excellent Zatopeks and this is – what looks to be from their biog – their 7th release, but first full length album. Kudos to them for that – no need to rush an album now is there…
It’s not sugar-coated pop-punk – it’s more No Fun At All than Mr T Experience. Which is no bad thing. There’s a slightly dark sound to the tunes, albeit kept within that strict 1-2-3-4 punk rock persona that Dutch and German bands tend to do fucking well. The guy’s voice reminds me a bit of Rentokill, although I think it’s going to grate a lot on English audiences. That aside, it’s fucking enjoyable stuff. There’s the odd Anti-Flag style single note simple riff in there to get the tunes stuck in your head – none of the songs outstay their welcome and they’re peppered liberally with gang vocals and catchy, one line choruses.
I know there’s a ton of this kind of band around – you could probably watch a carbon copy band in Berlin every night of the year – but Accelerators have a slightly edgier sound than most, and this is well worth a listen if this kind of thing floats your proverbial boat.
Mike