REVIEW: Heartsounds – “Drifter”

Heartsounds / Drifter / Epitaph

“My guilty conscience playing on repeat, so sweet is the sound,” explains guitarist Ben Murray during the record’s midpoint “Race To The Bottom”, a three-minute wildfire of convulsive fret work that transforms from a riotous riff-haven to damaged pop punk in 52 seconds. Born a year after Until We Surrender, Heartsounds’ Drifter is like the holy grail for the common anarchist man. It will traumatize the way you listen to punk as track one to twelve let chemistry emit senseless kit beatdowns (“Unconditional”, “Elements”), a bit of unconventional technical disorder (“I Have Nobody To Betray”) and darker stabs at heartfelt pleas (“Echo”, “Uncomfortably Numb”).

All of which, prove Drifter is as much as a revival of 90s’ DIY punk as it is a riff-driven piece. It won’t turn you upside down with carving lyrics but it will smack your jaw with blistering metal-inspired-yet-it-comes-out-skate punk rock and kick it around on the floor a bit more. Making subtle additions to the name Heartsounds – bassist Kyle Camarillo and drummer Trey Derbes – has let both Murray and guitarist Laura Nichol concentrate on doing the aforementioned while allowing vocals to quietly float among the debris of riffage. The sound does warp but the pace is consistent, making you wish other bands (or the Skate Or Die series) impaled at such an autogenetic velocity.

Download: “Race To The Bottom”, “Uncomfortably Numb”

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