Meadow Burials: New Release

 

Nick from Ghost of The Avalanche and his mates from Bath, UK, are back with a third release.

I wrote a few words about Meadow Burials something like 6 months ago and I am always happy to see new stuff coming from this well appreciated punk rock group.

Released by the Birmingham label Die Das Der, the five new songs of Poems were recorded during the first UK lockdown, each member recording their individual part at home. Yes it's more and more what modern music projects look like, no need to get together any more (especially in these lockdown times)... one guy here, another on the other side of the world/country, a laptop and a mic and here we go! Well why not ? 

 

 

Described as "a true snapshot of our times", Poems is said to be for fans of "early Black Flag, The Bronx, Misfits, Circle Jerks, Ramones, Fucked Up, Bad Breeding etc..." which is a quite large circle of influence to says the least...

Since the beginning Nick love playing with the different genres of punk rock, exploring the codes and musical schemes of each of them, that's what a lot of "Home Recorders" like to do actually.

Poems takes it right where Modern Age had left it with this mix of fast hardcore punk tracks and some more melodic hardcore oriented songs. It's difficult to point out a band in particular which would be the main influence here, Nick has perfectly digested the American punk rock culture of the 80s, 90s and early 2000s to produce something which sounds extremely familiar (in a good way: Nick brings us home) without being a copycat or a nostalgic testimony.

 

It starts with a bang with the short and fast Witch Hunt which is not without reminding Modern Age actually (the song not the release) and which, with Lost Soul and Washed Ashore, makes up the "hardcore" part of the EP. 

 

   But the main change is probably the length of the tunes, on Modern Age none were more than one minute long  whereas four out of five are around 1:30 this time. This little extra time gives more space to develop the melody of the vocals on Anxiety and The Sacrificed, the two tracks which make the "melodic hardcore" part (a bit in the vein of Let The Right One In from Preface). It just gives more time to get into it to be honest and that's for the best.

So yes Nick is back to something closer to Preface, the 2019 tape, but with the sound and musical vibes of Modern Age.

Poems is, in my opinion, the best release of the band, combining great influences, good song writing, impressive sense of melody and good recording quality, but will Nick and his mates will not have to explore something slightly different in the future in order to keep the flame burning?

 

Meadow Burials could be described as some kind of tribute to all the American punk rock culture of the last century (in a large sense) but no, I think it's just more the result of the love for it and the simple desire of a guy to make the music he enjoys. 

And it's simply a good thing.

 

 

 

You can listen to Meadow Burials on Rien à Faire #17. 

N,J'Oi!

 

 

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