HAMMERHANDS "Model Citizen"

HAMMERHANDS

"Model Citizen"

An island of grimy weirdness floating in a sea of mediocre bands, HAMMERHANDS gives one hope that quirky heavy rock can still survive. There have been some notable recent releases in the noise rock vein...the return of TORCHE, the new one from CHERUBS...but this odd mutt of an album is the best yet. It's one of those rare records where you don't know exactly what is coming at you next and which exists in its own world.

A few things stick out about HAMMERHANDS from the get go. One: that freakin' bass sound! What a grungy, gnarly, oozy thing it is! 99% of death metal and hardcore bands would have no hope of coming up with a bass sound like these guys use. Just get a load of the sinewy, stalking bass groove that underlies opener "Pleasure Island"...it sounds like an anaconda coming in for the attack. And then the vocals. Most of them are an ultra-gruff growl that is NOT in the death metal vein, but sounding more like a monster version of TOM WAITS. Even on the less heavy tunes like "Not In the Cards", it gives the music a weird, phantasmagoric feel. In addition to those growls, there's a clearer type of vocal that's like an anguished shout...like a lunatic straining at his straitjacket.

So the bass and the vocals stand out, but the songwriting is varied and unique. The aforementioned "Pleasure Island" is a nasty groover, "MAXIMUM Beta" has a harsh; almost industrial kind of sound, "Dad Sludge" is as heavy as HAMMERHANDS gets and lives up to sludge description. But there are more off the wall and atmospheric tracks...."Too Many Rivers" has a dry and dusty desert sound in its melody that others have compared to KYUSS meets ENNIO MORRICONE, "Not In The Cards" is even more poignant and like something David Lynch would use in his movies. Last track "Bastard Jesus" is the longest and strangest, building up in layers over a choppy beat with bluesy guitars. This song is something you have to hear several times to get the gist of.

That applies to "Model Citizen" in general. I find even the harder to get into moments rather fascinating and this is as far from boilerplate metal or heavy rock as you can get. It's something that should definitely get a wider audience.

HAMMERHANDS