Unsane

NYC noise institution, the legendary Unsane return with their second post-"hiatus” full-length and the first for their new label, the always eccentric Ipecac. Following their return to form after a not so brief break that spanned three years, 2005’s Blood Run (Relapse), Unsane continue to murder musically with little regard for innocent bystanders, showing no evidence that age will ever mellow their harsh. While rumours abounded that Visqueen, which is named after a brand of polyethylene film (think the large plastic tarps bodies are wrapped and dumped in, add a field and you have the album’s cover), would feature a "different” Unsane, thankfully, it doesn’t, not really. True, the grooves are deeper, the stalking slower and the wall of hostility catchier, at times, but Unsane still grind relentlessly forward with distorted vocals, unrelenting menace, abrasion and malice. Tracks like "Against the Grain” and "This Stops at the River” could be on any "classic” Unsane release and, truthfully, their isn’t a stiff in the line-up. The only real departure over the 11-track, 42-minute record is closing number "East Broadway,” a pounding, eight-plus-minute epic of vocal-less repetition that sounds more like now label-mates Isis. Trends come and trends go but bands like Unsane (and there are a precious few) should be forever.