The members of Playing Enemy certainly have an impressive resume of musical ventures in which they have been previously involved: Rorschach, Kiss it Goodbye, Deadguy, Undertow, and Nineironspitfire among others. But rather than re-hash sounds and styles characteristic of those projects, Playing Enemy, instead ventured down a different path in the hardcore/metal realm.
The Seattle-based band first hit the scene in 2000 with their debut release, Cesarean, which was a blend of chaotic yet methodical hardcore and math-metal. The band followed with Ephemera in 2003, further defining their style with their unconventional song structures. This brings us to their newest LP, I Was Your City, their first for upstart label Hawthorne Street Records.
Following the brooding and building intro track "Cancer," the album kicks in typical Playing Enemy form with the track "Jade." The song is best described as calculated chaos - think of "dirtier" version of Botch and you're along the right track. Andrew Gormley's drumming abilities certainly haven't suffered over the years. Rather than relying on traditional drum fills and the ol' double bass, he works the entire kit and quite proficiently.
The band continues to surge through song after song of their unique blend of metal, hardcore, and noise - fully executing the talents of all its members. In particular, bassist Shane Mehling's playing can be heard throughout the entire length of every track. This is somewhat of an anomaly in music of this genre; normally the bass is buried so deep in the mix to hide the bassist's lack of skill. This is not the case here; a pleasant surprise indeed.
The trio, rounded out by guitarist / vocalist Demiam Johnston, does take time to venture away from their stereotypical sound from time to time, something that helps distinguish the band from its peers. Take the track "The End of Something," for example. The majority of the song is made up of cathartic and moody guitar riffs while Johnston screams out passionate lyrics like "I need you... / I'm not telling / This time I'm asking / Please hear me / I want our old life back / I'm so fucking crazed to be so alone in life." The lyrics get even darker and more cryptic towards the end of the song - definitely some deep and personal content.
The band obviously returns to what they do best for the remainder of the album. Another highpoint toward the end of the album is "Angels in a Trailer." There are some excellent and very unique drum fills over the course of the song, not to mention the sweet-ass on/off guitar time-signatures used in the later portion of the song.
I Was Your City is easily Playing Enemy's best album yet, the band has yet again found a way to evolve their signature style into something more captivating that before. It takes great talent to continue to evolve as a band to gather new listeners yet be able to keep your old fans interested. Playing Enemy certainly has that talent, but unless you're a complete dweeb you already knew that.
