| CD REVIEW Warship |
|
|
Band : Warship When From Autumn To Ashes announced their break-up on June 9, 2008 (leaving us a total of 5 albums including the 2008 Live At Looney Tunes), Francis Mark (drums and vocals) and Rob Lauritsen (guitar & bass, joined FATA in mid 2006) lost little time in stomping this new project out of the ground and writing a total of 10 (completely different from what they’d done before) songs (well, actually that’s pulling the truth by the hairs somewhat: finding a great chemistry between each other, the duo had come together to write music originally intended for a new FATA albums, and found what they wrote together to be quite different from the typical stylings of their band. FATA folding, there was no reason why these songs wwouldn’t be worked out a little more into what they are today…as Mark had actually been looking to begin a new chapter in his life since wrapping up touring for FATA’s 2007 album Holding A Wolf By The Ears), which would be recorded in a New York studio over the Summer with co-producer Andrew Schneider (of Pelican, Cave In, Keelhaul fame). Again not loosing any time when the occasion rose to play support to Reggie And The Full Effect‘s North American tour which took place from August 20 to September 14 , they recruited a drummer friend named Greg March (to allow Mark to concentrate on his singing) and The Bled’s bassist Darren Simoes, already playing most of the songs in live conditions. So, how different from FATA’s Emo-drenched Mathematical Metalcore is Warship’s music? Well, we move into a completely different atmosphere here, really! Sludge seems to be the most approriate name for it overall, but with a variety in it, alternatingly fusing frantic Hardcore or savage Doom Metal into it in the heavier moments, or gloomy melodic Fuzz Rock in the calmer ones. Vocally, Mark both goes the most melodic (check songs like “Wounded Paw”, buy even more “Lousy Horoscope” and “Indoors”) and most aggressive he’s ever gone (stating that he was litterally grabbing the mike and yelling his head off). It has to be said that the lyrical topics (war, suicide, the ills of society) lend themselves quite perfectly for the expression of this much concerned feelings (having such a tool as music at hand, which sensitive American citizen could/ would stay calm when looking at the un-equal distribution of wealth in the world, or the fact that the US has been at war – again – for six years but most of US citizens don’t even stop to consider it because the impact on their personal lives is so small due to the fact that everything happens so far from their homes…unless they have family members in the armed forces?). With the album out since the beginning off this month (and we truly can’t help it if distributors decide to send their promo stuff over a little late…or not at all, the editor-in-chief picking up things through his relations in the business) the album’s been getting laurels in several of the main music magazines, and most deservedly so! If you haven’t picked up on things yet, you can have a “sneak” preview at 4 songs at myspace.com/mywarship. By the way, if you’re wondering about the band’s name, it came from an epifamy Mark got when decorating worship candles, and a friend asking him what he was doing. Apparently the friend understood that Mark was painting warships on the candles, and this led Mark to ponder about the relationship the two, how discouraging it is when ‘worship’ begets ‘warships” (understand? how, much too often, religion is an instigator to warfare, see?). No need to tell you the album rakns high enough in my personal appreciation scale to make my yearlists…I suppose the rating is sufficient indicator for that, eh? 98/100 Tony. |
