Thursday, September 19, 2013

Blitz Review: HSY - S/T


You may not notice this too much, but there seems to be a desire to make pretty music nowadays. Yeah, there's plenty of punk rock and metal to go around, but the styles and production values leave a very clean taste in your mouth after you listen to them. Since the ye olde grunge days, we haven't really been given many bands that aim to sound as if they're music is being dragged through a huge pile of mud. HSY has aimed to changed that on their self titled EP.

Combining grunge with a Joy Division-esque sense of punk, HSY don't seem to care what finished product they give you, so long as it's fuzzy yet aggressive. The opening track, "Milk Chug", is a grainy bass-ridden tune that thumps along well with a simple, yet exceptional drum beat. It's a great opener, and I wish they'd left it for a full length album, but the fact it exists is nice in the first place. "Ladies Night" essentially takes the same approach as "Milk Chug", but is slower and more methodical in its rock delivery. Both songs have an echo of Sonic Youth to them, but they don't dive too much into the experimental to truly warrant a legitimate comparison.

"Waffles", the punkest song out of all of them, is quick and loud, but bares a slight resemblance to "Milk Chug", making it still a good song on it own, but with less of a lasting effect because of it. The other two tracks, "Slimeball" and "Tartar Mouth", are solid additions, with "Tartar Mouth" being the better of the two for its trudging bass riff and hardly recognizable vocal stylings.

HSY is a quick, but solid, EP. These guys have a pretty unique sound, and it'll be nice to see how they transition their growing experience into making a full length album. They may be content with making EPs forever, but I for one would like to hear a ten track album of their stuff. It may not be the prettiest music around, but I'll be damned if it's not some of the best. - Shane



No comments:

Post a Comment