Narrows

There are those record labels that, when I get new releases from them, they go into my brain right away. Profound Lore, Flenser, Rise Above, Peaceville and, on the non-metal tip, Secretly Canadian/Dead Oceans/Jagjaguwar generally put out music that I enjoy thoroughly. I get pumped when their promos arrive and usually clear my schedule to take on the new music.

Another label on that list is Deathwish Inc., who put out hardcore-centric bands that generally do not adhere to strict genre boundaries. Their bands are challenging, stimulating, and a breath of fresh air from the so-called hardcore fodder put out by many other labels with wider distribution but less-demanding artistic aspirations (looking at you, Victory and Rise). So while putting on any Deathwish record probably guarantees that whatever hardcore whim you have lingering deep inside of you will be satisfied, you’ll also get to stretch your legs, expand your mind and get a taste of other things. Last year, they put out Deafheaven’s debut record “Roads to Judah,” which made our Top 40 of 2011 and has gone on to become one of the brightest releases in the USBM scene. Yet their punk and classic screamo traits also shine through.

Deathwish also recently signed Code Orange Kids, who hail from my end of Pennsylvania, another ripper of a band that’ll excite the masses, as well as French band Birds in Row, and they are added to an already impressive roster that includes Doomriders, Blacklisted, Integrity, Oathbreaker and tons more. And today we’ll take a look at two more bands, one that’s back with their second album for the label and the other making their Deathwish debut after a string of successful self-issued releases.

Narrows claims some band members in Seattle, some in San Diego and others in London, and they’ve been one of the more interesting, forward-thinking hardcore bands since their awesome 2009 debut “New Distances,” a non-accidental title considering all the land that separates this band. Complete with eye-catching artwork and a progressive, math-friendly, indie-charged approach to hardcore, the album was a really captivating listen because it combined so many different styles, but did so seamlessly and successfully. It’s been on my iPod and in fairly regular rotation ever since it dropped.

Their new album “Painted” also will catch your eye when you see the wacko album cover (above), and the music will reveal a band that’s really grown, matured and warped even further from what they revealed three years ago. It’s amazing how cohesive the whole thing sounds considering, again, the distance keeping members apart and creation in different settings (Skype was used!), and it’s a punchy, heavy record that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat. “Under the Guillotine” gets things going with a nice sense of groove coming from Ryan Frederiksen’s and Jodie Cox’s (T hese Arms Are Snakes) guitars, and frontman Dave Verellen (Botch, Roy) lets loose with harsh barks and shouts. “TB Positive” jerks around and leaps all over the map with its aggressiveness; “Absolute Betrayer” has an indie rock edge to the guitar work, and the same can be said for “Final Mass”; “It’s in the Water” has some Southern rock mud to stomp on, as Verellen laments, “Another fucking curse”; while centerpiece “Greenland” simmers on drone and noisy ambiance for its first half before folding into doom and roll and a calculating, crushing finish. A Sunn 0))) fan probably could dig that.

Narrows are two-for-two with their first couple of full-lengths, and clearly distance and pesky immigration laws are not going to keep this machine from rolling. As excited as I am about “Painted,” I can’t wait to hear how they shape and shift into their third record. Until then, I’ll stop being greedy and will be satisfied with the band’s catalog up to this point.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/narrows

To buy the album, go here: http://deathwishinc.com/estore/category/NEW.html

Loma Prieta

Loma Prieta have been holding things down in the San Francisco Bay Area since 20005, and they have four 12-inch releases and a couple 7-inch records out on their own Discos Huelga. So they’ve been super active and have been carving out a following of their own before Deathwish came calling. Their style, much like Narrows, certainly centers on hardcore, but they have threads of melodic punk and indie rock. Added to that is the passion and emotion the band displays in their music, which gives their stuff the makings of public catharsis anytime they pull into your town for a show.

The band’s new album “I.V.” was recorded at a time of great pain and tumult for the band, and their path through dark and challenging situations comes across on this effort. You feel every ounce of this thing, as if you are in the room with them during a bloodletting. If you aren’t captured by what’s going on in these songs and in their hearts, you might be dead. The album is a light that burns out very fast, as it lasts a mere 22 minutes, but the guys make the most of it with 12 songs that hopefully helped them heal from such anguish. “Fly By Night” (not a Rush cover, thanks) launches a melodic assault that sounds like it could be embraced by mainstream listeners who can get with the acidic, strong vocal work. “Torn Portrait” sounds angry and menacing, as does “Reproductive,” that just goes off. The triptych “Trilogy IV”-“Trilogy VI” carries over a theme from their “Lost Worlds” release and is stitched together effortlessly. The piece goes from thrashy to furious to forceful, especially with the warning shot, “Stay the fuck away!” “Uniform” is mathy and pissed at you; “Biography” has that aforementioned indie/punk edge; and “Aside From This Distant Shadow, There Is Nothing Left” feels like vintage At the Drive In, with vocals that sound designed to permanently damage the throat.

Loma Prieta should only grow bigger with Deathwish behind them. They’re a band that’s gone beyond promise and has shown a deadly consistency that proves they should be here for the long haul. As long as they are, we are too.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/LOMA-PRIETA/69571119156

To buy the album, go here: http://deathwishinc.com/estore/category/NEW.html

To buy the band’s other releases, go here: http://discoshuelga.bigcartel.com/

For more on the label, go here: http://deathwishinc.com/