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A strong Punk foundation that just feels run down.-
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| Kicker: Innit |
Punk, Punk Rock
Tankcrime Records
April 12th, 2011
- Innit - 2:28
- Wrong Things - 2:05
- Two Hates - 2:16
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| Links |
| Review Information |
Release length: 6:49
Review posted on April 21st, 2011
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| | Overall Score: 5.5/10 |
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| Discography |
Discography covers all information available up to day of review and is updated if future albums are reviewed. |
| EP(s): |
Innit (2011)
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| Review |
Kicker hails from Oakland, California, and is a Punk Rock act that features Pete "The Roadie" and "other older guys". Apparently, Pete had been a roadie for Punk bands for around thirty years, and just now put a band together. The group is also backed by current and former members of Neurosis,/b>, dystopia, and Filth!. Innit is issued as a 7" vinyl EP limited to four hundred pressings. However, is the rarity of this release going to be the only thing that increases in value as time goes on, or even worth the value right now? This question immediately comes to mind as soon as your ead the press information and read "other old guys", "roadie for thirty years", and how limited the release is, though the latter is more the norm in any music style now, especially in the Punk scene.
Musically, Kicker is great. The songs are catchy and have the typical Punk groove and rebellious vibe behind them that really captures the older sound of the style, clearly stemming from Pete's years of being a roadie for acts like Subhumans and Amebix. However, this is about where the EP draws the line. The release consists of three songs, and all of them are naturally addicting musically with a lower quality, all of which feels very bass heavy. However when the vocals come in, you can tell that the vocalist isn't even really trying, or if he is, clearly the age is not working in his favor, as they simply sound run down, like someone who sings monotone karaoke when drunk, except here the worlds are clear and not slurred, just lacking energy and enthusiasm, as well as any sort of on-key performance at times.
The title track, "Innit", is a fun song that feels more like a generally angsty and angry-at-every-day-life kind of song, and musically it works with the lyrics that portray this well. However, the chorus takes a little to become adjusted to due to the lack of enthusiasm in the vocals, and how the word "innit" is being performed during the choppy, open sections of the music to that chorus. Right away, it becomes clear the vocals are a little more amateurish, and while not horrible, they definitely don't inspire much for this track, or the following two songs that stand on equal footing musically, though "Two Hats" is a little catchier then the rest, and "Wrong Things" has a stronger vocal performance that feels a little harsher and more aggressive then the traditional worn-down vocal approach that encompasses the rest of the EP.
Innit isn't the greatest Punk or Punk Rock EP you'll find. Musically it's pretty strong, and that's obvious given the lineage to some of the supporting members of the band. However, the run down vocals feel more like a gimmick of the fact that the band is a couple of old guys, and it just doesn't fit with the album. A little more energy or enthusiasm would have gone a long way with this release, and instead it just sounds like an EP the band could have cared less about recording. For a collector's value, it's worth the cash the label is asking, especially if you're a fan of Punk, but overall, it's nothing really special, though, for the music, it's still worth giving it a spin if you happen on someone who owns it.
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Digital review copy of this release provided by:
Tankcrime Records
via Catharsis PR.
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