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The New Transit Direction Wonderful Defense Mechanisms music review
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The New Transit Direction Wonderful Defense Mechanisms
Some Records
Home of all things ironically surprising, Salt Lake City has brought
up, yet
again, another punk band despite its heavy religious affiliations.
Track listing:
01 Fictional
02 Survival 101
03 Means To An End
04 Anonymous
05 Three Word Distrust
06 Out The Lights
07 Mechanical Failure
08 To The Sea
09 Conditions
10 Houston
11 Pieces
The New Transit Direction springs forward, on and out of the stately
restraints with Wonderful Defense Mechanisms (Some Records, 2004).
Sounding
like a lazed Thursday, but with less focus on the screamo and more on
its
emotional counterpart, TNTD is a post-punk blend of emo and indie rock.
The band, consisting of Josh Asher (vocals, guitar), Dan Whitesides
(drums),
Jake Hawley (guitar) and Levi Lebo (bass) has long awaited the
completion
and release of the album just as much as their fans. Creating the band
in
2000, TNTD had spent three years promoting themselves with EPs before
being
accepted into Some Records. Having readied themselves for actual studio
work, upon driving to New York to record the debut in late 2003, they
were
greeted with the untimely Blackout, which temporarily halted their
plans.
But now, here it is, after years of perfecting their sound.
Unfortunately for the band, little do they realize that they resemble
pop-punkers Hawthorne Heights, after a handful of sleeping pills.
There’s
also a dabbling of Incubus in the mix, too. And even, if you’ll believe
it,
some sort of twist between Jane’s Addiction and The Hives. As before,
they
have the potential to become a very full-throttle, fierce band, but the
tracks come up slightly lackluster. There’s just something that’s been
left
behind.
It’s not to say it’s not worthwhile, but the edge that is necessary to
pose
as the backing force to their rock-liberation vibe hasn’t quite made it
through. Despite this, there are quite a few positives to the band.
Asher’s
voice, for example, is full of angst and neediness and raw integrity
designed to evoke the feelings portrayed in the lyrics.
But perhaps, if you like both the polar opposites of screamo and emo,
you
can appreciate a band such as TNTD, which encompasses just enough of
each to
hold your interest, but keep you guessing.
