For a band formerly signed to
Victory Records, American Standards’ new EP “Hungry Hands” proves that the band
escaped from the infamous label’s toxic touch alive and well enough to produce
one of the year’s most impressive efforts. The three song EP runs at just under
10 minutes, and the band does not waste a second on frivolities from the
opening riff of “Casket Party”, a song characterized by the bouncing
instrumentation of the verses and two well-placed half time mosh riffs that
will make you inexplicably furious. Frantic guitar riffs and dissonant chords
dominate the EP, causing the listener to draw obvious comparisons to titans of
the genre such as Refused and Converge, but by no means is this band yet
another face in the ranks of the 90s hardcore revival. American Standards
relies more heavily on vocalist Brandon Kellum’s abrasive screaming and
poignant lyricism as opposed to the overbearing 90s-metalcore-beatdown-party
approach that so many of their peers have adopted and yet had no trouble
writing bone crushing riffs into all three of the songs. The true power of
American Standards’ explosive EP lies in pileup-inducing call and response
vocals, gang chants, and a rhythm section that will make even the tamest punk
spin kick a child. Mile-a-minute blast beat patterns give way to visceral mosh
riffs that will rattle your teeth as the crunchy guitar tone allows the EP to
retain an air of clarity that many hardcore bands shy away from in favor of walls
of distortion. While this may seem like a nuance, American Standards
refreshingly only cranks the gain once, breaking out thick, fuzzy guitars for a
doom metal inspired outro in “Circus Rats”. The band’s creativity is on full
display in the latter half of “Circus Rats” and throughout “The Complex Death
Machine”. The strangely soothing piano and guitar duet on “Circus Rats” gives
the listener a brilliantly brief moment to rest from the onslaught, before
grinding its way to a close with a neck-breaking beatdown. “The Complex Death
Machine” is a perfect end to the EP, pairing mixed time signatures and a
hellishly powerful chorus with a melodic and haunting outro that showcases
Kellum’s abilities as a lyricist, as his spoken word builds into aching and pained
shrieks.
However, despite their willingness
to depart from the norms of contemporary hardcore, there really is not anything
on this EP that has not been done before. The band sticks true to a formula
pioneered by the aforementioned Refused, but that is really their only offense.
And in truth, the songs are so attention-grabbing and enjoyable that it is
incredibly hard to fault them or consider this a particularly applicable
criticism, especially when one considers how many bands have failed outright to
capture the intensity and honesty of the “new noise” that Refused embodied.
Although I do not believe that a three song EP is substantial enough to warrant
Album of the Year buzz, “Hungry Hands” is a special release that deserves a
nomination for an EPOTY award, should one exist. The EP and the rest of their
music is available on their Bandcamp for free, so there is no excuse not to
download it.
-Jack
Tracklist
1. Casket
Party
2. Circus
Rats
3. The
Complex Death Machine
Download- 320kbps
