None More Black

Any Kid Dynamite fan is pretty much guaranteed to be at least somewhat fond of None More Black, the post-KD project of lead singer Jason Shevchuk. While the band’s debut, File Under Black, was a fairly consistent collection of aggressive, melodic punk rock, their Load About Loathing EP was somewhat slower and lacking the passion of Shevchuk’s earlier work. With their second full-length, the band seem to be slowing down even more, lacking much of the power that used to drive both Kid Dynamite and earlier None More Black material. While Shevchuk’s vocals still offer their trademark raspy melodies, the actual songs that back up his vocal performance are rarely up to snuff, not musically interesting enough to just be cool sounding, and rarely catchy enough to warrant repeated listens. There are a few notable exceptions here; "Who Crosses the State Line Without a Shirt” succeeds in being a great mid-tempo pop song with punk vocals, making for an interesting, unique listen, while "Opinions & Assholes” features a blistering Jawbox-like verse guitar part that kicks the crap out of everything else on this record.