wot moleculz fort of jackhammuz furst album
If you had approached me a few years ago and said ''you're going to come into possession of an album that combines hardcore/metal (I am told this is known as metalcore) and ska with dashes of sea shanty and klezmer'' I should have swiftly struck you with my dueling glove.
But it's 2009 and my honour remains intact, because not only do Flaming Tsunamis combine these disparate sounds successfully (principally one after the other in the manner of Mr. Bungle, but with more pirates), they put a refreshing twist on the relentless screaming angst of 10,000 North American hardcore bands.
'Fear Everything' delivers horns and odd time signatures where previously there was factory-line white suburban yawndom. Lyrically as far as I can gather it's standard anti-authority stuff, you get the feeling that the Tsunamis have a bone to pick with the ritalin-prescribing doctors and parents that, until this album, had kept their blast-beating tendencies in check.
If you're one of those strange people that doesn't enjoy any metal or hardcore punk EVER then this album won't change your mind; if you're a devotee I'd imagine it's pretty much essential. It definitely sticks out like a sore thumb next to all my other progressive albums, take that Byzantium!
Song to check:
Bird Watching and Vice Versa ('that's the single!')
mulleculz scaw: Anywhere between
7 and
8.5/10, depending on disposition