If there’s one thing I want from my punk rock these days, it’s intensity. Loud, fast, unforgiving. No bullshit. I want rumbling bass and sloppy power chords and spit-soaked vocals. These are the things that endeared me to punk as a kid, and though my musical tastes have since blossomed, I still find myself craving that noisy, belligerent energy. Luckily, the new EP Slave Task by NY’s Matt Hall has just the fix I was chasing.
Slave Task sounds like it was recorded live at a DIY house show—I can practically hear the sea of sweaty kids roiling in front of the band. The guitar thrashes fast power chords through a dirty overdrive. The drums smash out cut beats at hectic tempos, working the crash cymbals to the point of cracking. The bass squeals through a fuzz on par with radio static, the gain cranked so not a cent of amp noise is lost. The wavering keys sew in a creepy atmosphere as they tip back and forth between melody and noise.
Everything about this delightfully raw, and the vocals are no exception. Matt barks, growls, whines and screeches, delivering every word with a severe, almost venomous sarcasm. The lyrics are devoid of any pretense or pomp, calling out Steven Tyler’s problematic past in “You (Stolen) Future is Now” and smacking down those whiny “Punk is Dead” dinosaurs in “Obvious Trap:” “Let someone else experience for themselves, without your fucking commentary.”
Slave Task sounds like it was recorded live at a DIY house show—I can practically hear the sea of sweaty kids roiling in front of the band. The guitar thrashes fast power chords through a dirty overdrive. The drums smash out cut beats at hectic tempos, working the crash cymbals to the point of cracking. The bass squeals through a fuzz on par with radio static, the gain cranked so not a cent of amp noise is lost. The wavering keys sew in a creepy atmosphere as they tip back and forth between melody and noise.
Everything about this delightfully raw, and the vocals are no exception. Matt barks, growls, whines and screeches, delivering every word with a severe, almost venomous sarcasm. The lyrics are devoid of any pretense or pomp, calling out Steven Tyler’s problematic past in “You (Stolen) Future is Now” and smacking down those whiny “Punk is Dead” dinosaurs in “Obvious Trap:” “Let someone else experience for themselves, without your fucking commentary.”
The whole of Slave Task is an indictment of the bizarre and contradictory world we live in, but no song beats this drum as heavily as “Normal and Healthy.” Twice as long as all its bedfellows, this tune expertly captures the feeling of living in a dystopia. Above syncopated riffs and ringing keyboard chords, Hall scrapes hard questions from the inside of his throat: “How real does it have to be before you react?” “Will you kill to live?” The band then devolves into an absolutely maddening outro, repeating the same simplistic riff and beat over and over and over like some sort of fucked up mantra. “Normal and Healthy” is anything but, a trance-inducing counterpoint to the chaos of our days.
Slave Task is an inspiring homage to punk’s early days and early ways, updated for the 21st century struggle we’re all too damn familiar with. The riffs are fast, the energy utterly relentless. Matt Hall gives us a refreshingly fearless take on the aggression and brutal honesty so inherent in punk rock. So if you’re looking for a dose of adrenaline cut with unbridled fury, look no further; Slave Task will keep you hyped and hungry for more.
Slave Task is an inspiring homage to punk’s early days and early ways, updated for the 21st century struggle we’re all too damn familiar with. The riffs are fast, the energy utterly relentless. Matt Hall gives us a refreshingly fearless take on the aggression and brutal honesty so inherent in punk rock. So if you’re looking for a dose of adrenaline cut with unbridled fury, look no further; Slave Task will keep you hyped and hungry for more.
You can find more from Matt Hall and grab your own copy of Slave Task on their Bandcamp page.
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