i hate the sound of guitars

Yes, it’s time for another dispatch from the retro-future of The Epoxies. The title track is a brooding apocalypse-celebrating number on which virtually all the instruments drip with distortion; the touchstone here is the spooky intersection of new wave, punk, and goth — a bit like Killing Joke, but it reminds me even more of something I can’t quite put my finger on. (I finally figured it out! 45 Grave) “Here in the Dark” cheeses it up dead-on faux-Holly-Knight stylee (you might not know Knight’s name, but her military metaphor love songs were all over the 80’s airwaves: Pat Benatar’s “Love is a Battlefield” and “Invincible,” and Patty Smythe’s “The Warrior” among them). “Crystal Clear” is a track from an alternate-universe Blondie album recorded in between Plastic Letters and Parallel Lines. Plenty of careers have been built on copping some Debbie Harry ‘tude, but by extending the sincerity of their flattery to include I-swear-that’s-Clem-Burke drum fills, The Epoxies transcend the merely derivative. “Products” cranks up both the jitter-factor and the social consciousness; it ought to sit cheek-by-jowl on a mix with the Buzzcocks’ “Credit” from last year’s underrated Flat-Pack Philosophy, and it’s a strong contender for my 2007 year’s best songs list. “Tragedy” is a speedy cover of The Wipers’ tune that amply demonstrates that The Epoxies can rock even without synthesizers. It’s fun and all, but I actually rather have another original in its place, which is saying something.
My primary criticism of this EP is that I wish there were more of it — you can play it twice in the space of half an hour and have time left over.