I really, really, really wanted to like this band. I wanted to love them and have them for my own brand new discovery. The influences, from AFI to Bad Religion, the fact that they had sent us a Cd all the way from Moscow, Idaho, and not to mention the dark imagery present in both the music, lyrics and art of the album, all made me hope for the very best from them.
Unfortunately, I was left deflated by the blandness of it all, mostly due to a prevailing factor – the total lack of urgency or passion in the songs. Every track is played a if it were an interlude in a song rather than a song in itself. This is mostly due to the highly pedestrian drum work which removes an intensity that may or may not have been present in the song writing. I apologise to the drummer in the band, but seriously, speed things up a bit. A lot. In fact, just play a different drum beat than the one-two-one-two monstrosity that underpins every song on here. If ever I was drooling for a band to undertake some double time drum work….
Anyway, if it wasn’t for the frankly amateur drumming on here and a slow, trudging quality to some of the songs, P36 could be very good indeed. With a vocalist that reminds me of a restrained Jello Biafra, some truly evil guitar licks, and imaginative interludes and gang vocals, it’s even more of a shame that the album sounds flat and uninspired.
There’s clearly a lot of song writing talent encompassed within this foursome, but the poor recording and the lack of instrumental proficiency tears away any heart to the band. There’s not enough fantastic straight up punk bands with a dark side, and I was kinda hoping that P36 could at least buck the trend slightly, but disappointment is the order of the day im afraid.
Ross