Black Pistol Fire's fifth record comprises 12 tracks of face-melting, dirty blues that know when to change it up.
Deadbeat Graffiti is the band's most diverse project yet, and perhaps their most complete. Like every other studio offering, it can't quite capture the furious energy of the band's live shows.
That's not a knock on this album — it's a daunting task to recreate the reckless force that Black Pistol Fire conjures night after night. So instead, the band seem to resolve that they should experiment rather than putting out a full-on sonic assault, and it mostly pay off.
The Toronto-born duo who now call Austin, Texas home kick off the album with a driving riff on "Lost Cause" that eventually settles into a danceable groove. It's a sonic theme heard throughout Deadbeat Graffiti — wild intensity coupled with tuneful resolution.
Throughout the album's 40-minute runtime, there's Velcro-ripping fuzz tones and pitch-shifted madness, washed-out surf vibes and choppy tremolos, even a micro-synth and some traces of soul.
But Deadbeat Graffiti is still pummelling when it needs to be. Songs like "Don't Ask Why" seem fitting for guitar-slinger and vocalist Kevin McKeown's signature jumping leg kicks, and "Eastside Racket" is perfect for drummer Eric Owens to let loose with his frenetic flurries.
There are also cuts like the sleepy crooner "Watch it Burn" that help keep the record from growing stale. Deadbeat Graffiti is dynamic enough to keep your head banging throughout.
(Modern Outsider)Deadbeat Graffiti is the band's most diverse project yet, and perhaps their most complete. Like every other studio offering, it can't quite capture the furious energy of the band's live shows.
That's not a knock on this album — it's a daunting task to recreate the reckless force that Black Pistol Fire conjures night after night. So instead, the band seem to resolve that they should experiment rather than putting out a full-on sonic assault, and it mostly pay off.
The Toronto-born duo who now call Austin, Texas home kick off the album with a driving riff on "Lost Cause" that eventually settles into a danceable groove. It's a sonic theme heard throughout Deadbeat Graffiti — wild intensity coupled with tuneful resolution.
Throughout the album's 40-minute runtime, there's Velcro-ripping fuzz tones and pitch-shifted madness, washed-out surf vibes and choppy tremolos, even a micro-synth and some traces of soul.
But Deadbeat Graffiti is still pummelling when it needs to be. Songs like "Don't Ask Why" seem fitting for guitar-slinger and vocalist Kevin McKeown's signature jumping leg kicks, and "Eastside Racket" is perfect for drummer Eric Owens to let loose with his frenetic flurries.
There are also cuts like the sleepy crooner "Watch it Burn" that help keep the record from growing stale. Deadbeat Graffiti is dynamic enough to keep your head banging throughout.