For some daft reason I get Buzzkill and Beecher mixed up, so when I put this cd on and I wasn’t met with some screaming noisecore, I was a little miffed. Then I read the press release, which as usual is head and shoulders above those of most labels, and quickly got an education. Based In Leeds, Buzzkill take that old-fashioned no frills rock and roll attitude and mix it up with a fierce punk snarl. Mix in some jazz and hardcore and you have an eclectic mix that forms this fivesome. Take the slickness away from Rocket From The Crypt, rough it all up and have them running around on Crack and the sum of those parts make Buzzkill.
‘Double Down’ is 22 mins of originality. I can’t think of another UK band that come anywhere close to sounding like them, there’s just so much going on that if anything it’s an interesting listen even if you don’t enjoy it. In a similar sense to the new Adequate 7 record, it pushes the envelope and at least has a go at breaking back boundaries. Having said that though, when has there ever been an identikit post-hardcore or pop-punk record put out on IATDE?
Although everything sounds great recorded you can sense that Buzzkill are going to be twice the band in a live setting. With so much going on you almost need that visual aspect to be able to take it all in, hence the reason why this receives 3.5 and nothing higher. Living up to its name, opener ‘Mr Furious’ rattles the cages and attempts to break the shackles of the genre confinements. With the sax playing alongside the guitars, and Matt’s vocals easily on a par with that of RFTC’s Speedo, there’s enough going on here to have everyone air drumming or tapping along.
The backing ‘hey’s’ add an extra dimension to the forceful ‘Casino’, while a driving bassline kicks off the dirty ‘Big City Taxi’. There’s ska in ‘I’ll Take Alcohol’, probably the song that when performed live would kick off some kind of dance-a-thon. But there are stale points too. After a while the 8 tracks can grate a little because they do follow a similar formula, while ‘Lost In Sauce’ borrows heavily from a guitar riff already used by The Take. The tone of the guitars is also a bit samey and sometimes when you await the musical explosion, it doesn’t quite kick off. See ‘Two Times’ as a prime example – the track builds and builds but vocalist Matt doesn’t actually blow up (although not literally!) It leaves me thinking how exciting the unhibited live version must be.
Points are always awarded for originality and this scores highly. Somewhere along the line the quality of the songs doesn’t quite live up to initial expectations, but you can certainly tell that there will be a ‘buzz’ about this band live. Ones to keep an eye, and an ear, on.
www.buzzkill.org.uk
Paul