picture by
11pmRecords
Rolex is a punk hardcore band from Los Angeles,
California, featuring members of past punk acts from the Golden State like
L.U.U.M,
Surgeons,
The Imposters,
Grimly Forming
or
Broken Vessels.
Well despite its poor visual interest, the cover of the
Rolex's 2017 demo
has at least the benefit to clearly show that the four guys from California are not
referring to a
Ugandan delicacy
but to a famous not-so-affordable Swiss watch brand... good to
know, I was really wondering.
With only one song over the 2-minutes-mark, Rolex is not here to
make it last. Six hard and fast songs ok, but what makes the band stand
out from your average local hardcore punk quartet is the heavy dose of
deranged guitar melodies, of hopping bass lines and of changes of pace
embedded in the expected hit and run formula.
Yes these guys know their hardcore punk classics by heart but don't
hesitate to add a pinch of tasty weirdness in their recipe... a great mix
between Black Flag, the early Minutemen and some early 2010s
No Way Records bands like
Acid Reflux.
So yes... it's pretty good!
I will not say much about the five R.O.L.E.X "singles" released between December 2017 and September 2019 as all the songs (except You Are My Sunshine, which is not really a song, from the first tape) have been re-recorded and released by 11pm Records on one self-titled EP.
So with 9 songs out of 10 under the 2 minutes mark, Rolex keeps the pace fast and the punk hardcore. Thanks to a better recording we can deeply enjoy the energy and efficiency of the band. Weird, angry and highly enjoyable are probably the adjectives you are looking for while the black wax 7" is spinning on your turntable...
When you decide to change a well-oiled machinery as the 80s American punk
hardcore genre the whole difficulty is to add parts without losing the
genre's core (the energy, the speed, the anger etc...) and I have to say
that Rolex manages it perfectly.
These weirdos add all the possible freakiness (great job from the
guitarist) without making us think for one second that we are not in front
of a hardcore punk record.
A great record!
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