| CD REVIEW Union Town |
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Band: Union Town Tilburg and Amsterdam based Post-Hardcore act Union Town was formed in 2006 by musicians who’d already been around in the Dutch scene: bassist Miriam van Ommeren had been active with the celebrated Malkovich up to then, drummer Dorus Meurs had just contributed to a No Turning Back album, singer Hein (whom joined a little later) had played bass with Justice for a while (he also runs tape label The Decline), and guitarist Joost Vogels has played with Downslide (amongst others). In late 2006, they recorded and released (through Hein’s tape label) a mostly up-tempo demo with songs into the late ‘80s vibe of DC Hardcore (as most prominently represented by the likes of Dag Nasty, Embrace, Ignition, and Rites Of Spring), a tape which sold reasonably well, in spite of the fact that the band hadn’t really played that many gigs outside the Holland/ Belgium area. In early 2007 UT made contact with Belgium label Powered Records, initially only for the exclusive release the band’s “full-length” debut, which they were originally planning to record towards the end of that year’s Summer. But by the end of May Miriam moved to Prague for 3 months, to focus on writing and photographing a travel guide to that capital city of the Czech Republic. In her absence during the Summer months, gigs were played employing Chris from Restless Youth as a stand-in. Meanwhile, Powered Records and The Decline had teamed up to re-release UT’s demo in the form of a 7-inch EP titled Demo 07, which saw release somewhere during August! The beginning of September 2007 is when demo recordings (say pre-production) started for the upcoming album, as well as an additional track meant to be issued by Angry Youth Records on a 4-way split 7-inch EP shared with Brat Pack, The Real Danger, and Tenement Kids. Followed a short 4-date trip to the UK with Belgian band Vogue (also in early September), an appearance at the ZxZW festival in Tilburg on Sept. 22, and a German tour (booked by renowned tour booker Kris Voorde) with Tenement Kids from 9 to 17 November. The album was eventually recorded & mixed during December 2007 and January 2008 by Pieter Kloos, in a production by the band and Ries Doms, at Eindhoven’s The Void Studio, and released on 12-inch vinyl in late June 2008. A release party done on June 28 at Amsterdam’s Winston Kingdom saw appearances not only of Tenement Kids and two other local bands, but also of The Gaslight Anthem! Around the time of release, the band posted the whole album on their MySpace page for a whole week, allowing people to witness the positive evolution the band went through towards a more diverse set-list of songs. Eventually the label came to the decision to also release that album (which contains 8 completely new songs and a re-recording of the 7-inch’s “Resentment”) in the CD form, after letting the master tapes being remastered at renowned American studios West West Side. The musical influences on the album remain in the DC Hardcore style, although perhaps with a somewhat broader palate, allowing to include some songs with a slower pace, remeniscent of Fugazi. Although Hein still sings in the same shouting style as on the 7-inch, there IS some vocal diversity on this album! Album opener “Regenarated” gets the one-off benefit of Miriam’s lush backing vocals as a positive addition. Towards the end of the ensuing “The Night Is Alive”, there’s a spoken word backing vocal passage, brought by one Gijs Wilbrink (and sorry, but I forgot to look up this guy’s relevance in the Dutch Hardcore scene). For “Halfway There” (a slightly calmer track which gradually grows into Fugazi territory) additional vocals were done, again by Wilbrink, in duet style. Obviously, “Resentment” represents the most aggressive stylings of the band! The pace is again slowed down somewhat for “Tomorrow’s Too Late” (actually the calmer song on the album overall!). “Don’t Give Up” (which was the first song to be posted by the band)distinguishes itself by additional guitar played by Chris Blankers, which only becomes evident towards the end of the track. Album closer “Punch And Bleed” opens with a rather calm drum beat, then explodes into ne of the faster songs on the album. To get a whiff of UT music, surf to myspace.com/uniontownband, where at this moment you’ll still find (or at least when I last looked this weekend) the tracks “Regenerated”, “Don’t Give Up”, “Resentment” (in it’s version off the EP), and “Live To Safe” (another track of that EP). Personally, I’ve always been more partial to those bands of the DC Hardcore scene who brought in some more tranquillity in their set, then getting psyched over the more up-tempo tracks those bands did! With this Dutch band, the balance is tipped to the other side, and while I certainly DO like what they do…a lot, it prevents me from giving their album a top rating, or inclusion into my year-lists (but that’s a viewpoint which may yet change as the year progresses). Belgian concertgoers will apparently have to wait around for a while, as the band hasn’t planned any gigs outside Holland for the time being, and that in Holland too! 95/100 Tony. |