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by scott woods (Monophonic81) / nathan schwalm (mythox007) - Mar 01, 2005
There is a World - Superfluous Noise Review #1 - Nathan Schwalm Man oh man, this recording cooks. This is what I call straight-ahead crunchy hardcore punk rock and roll. For those who hate 80s hardcore sounds and influences or love Blink 182, Ashliee Simpson, and/or current Lenny Kravitz 24/7 are the main suspects to hate this album or quit reading the review. This southwest Michigan band roots their sounds from the pioneer Hardcore bands such as: Minor Threat, Black Flag, Fugazi (in their heavier moments), and Jawbreaker. At times, this is not original hardcore stuff, but a well-attempt to respect the glory days of early hardcore. The standout tracks are the mosh-friendly "Small Town Shit Revival" with it's raging Black Flag grooves and shouting that would make Henry Rollins grin. "Al Czervik is Awesome!" in the middle of its punk rock rage lies a nice section of acoustic guitar strumming accompanied by piles of handclaps surrounding the brief twenty-second passage. In the wrap-up: cool and decent CD to mosh, headbang, and rock out to. It isn't a philosophical album from Al Stewart and it sure ain't pretty and melodic like Simon and Garfunkel harmonies, but it sure cooks. Review #2 - Scott Woods Superfluous Noise is the first album from Southern Michigan band There Is A World. This is an album filled with the energy you could expect from any number of early 80's punk bands. Unfortunately, it is also filled with what you could expect from many crappy 80's punk bands, no variety. I had very high hopes for this album after hearing the first track "Regressionary Self-Enhancement". The drums were fast and simple, the guitars were fuzzier than your grandma's upper lip, and the singer was screaming over the band. A very solid track. However, its title was prophetic. Each track seemed to be a derivative of the one preceding it. While each track is very listenable, the combination of them makes a very poor album. I think it would be best to rip this album into your hip mp3 player with the rest of your music collection and have it play a track randomly every now and then. Something that comes off very clearly from their album is that these guys probably put on an amazing live show. It bears repeating, there is a lot of energy on this album. I can see them tearing up a quick 30 minute set and then having to go out back and wring out their underoos because they were so soaked with sweat. Not that I would want to see that, but you know, it comes off that way. In summary, if There Is A World comes to town, go see them, buy their album, rip the tracks, and hope one comes up in a random mix. Oh yeah, and visit their website www.thereisaworld.tk. |