With roots in Orlando, Florida but now touching down in Philadelphia, members of hardcore outfit Direct Effect have presumably fallen victim to the general awfulness that is otherwise known as traveling up and down I-95 for extended periods of time. A slow crawl on a good day, traffic on this expanse of east coast highway has been actually known to crush a man's soul entirely. Stuck in a tin box for hours on end, there's little hope and few outlets for airing out one's grievances. However, based on the tunes presented on their first proper full-length Sunburn, the dudes in Direct Effect are totally the sort who pack road sodas for their car trips.
Registering in at roughly 26 minutes, the 13 tracks here on the band's Tiny Engines debut careen and crash all over the place. Amidst guitar riffs that spool out in all directions, vocals erupt out of a pile of empty beer cans and strike the ear like something out of Tremors. The throaty, confined direct vocals here serve as a veritable anchor used to navigate all the noise and squallor.
At a nervy three minutes and change, opening track "Permanent Vacation" is the longest song on the record. There's almost like a workmanlike approach to how the drums pound out time. Guitar licks noodle around in the corner for the bulk of the track before crashing into the front of the mix for the last thirty seconds. It's a bit difficult to gleam anything off of the actual lyrics of the song, but the angst and dissatisfaction are easy enough to pick up on.
The rest of the album works more in the range of a minute and a half ragers. "Unknown Disorder" has a real off-to-the-races feel about it, aided by urgent, fanged out vocals. "[ ]" is about as hardboiled and to the point as it gets, as evidenced by the track's lack of a formal name.
Sunburn has real Side A and Side B feel to it. The album starts out strong. Unfortunately, the punch wears off a little on the back end. Songs start to blur together virtually, which isn't necessarily a bad thing but it's surprising given the album's short run time.
That being said, album closer "Thoughts of Honey" is a standout. The guitar tones are a bit bigger and more full-bodied. It's seemingly framed like a more conventional rocker, and represents an intriguing possible path to be pursued in the future.
While released back in March, Sunburn still holds up as one of the more exciting releases of 2014. Hard-charging and tuneful hardcore with a nod to garage rock, it's got staying power. It could even work as the soundtrack on your next car trip.
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