The cover of Last Minute Fix's debut effort, Revenge of the Syringe, depicts a bald eagle sitting in an alley totally strung out. Sitting next to the eagle is a pile of pills, there are syringes stuck into each wing, a cigar (or possibly a joint) in its beak, and a noose around its neck. If one were to guess the style of music that Last Minute Fix plays solely on the cover, a logical guess would be crusty political punk. That is not the case as the Houston natives instead play hardcore that is a throwback to its early years.
Revenge of the Syringe begins with "The Abortion After-Party." The song is a commentary on the current state of the underground punk and hardcore music scene set to a New York City inspired hardcore tune - oh and the song features a guest vocals from Daniel of Die Young (TX). As the album unfolds, I noticed a definite Sick of it All influence - Scratch the Surface-era, not anything like the new album. The title track, "Revenge of the Syringe," is one I could easily see both hardcore and punk kids circle-pitting to. I know the circle pit is lame these days, but back in the day it was all the rage. "Hindsight" has a nice and quick pace to it - again demonstrating an influence from the earlier years of hardcore, especially that NYHC scene, and even has a thrash element to it.
Also worth mentioning is the band's cover of Black Flag's "American Waste." Last Minute Fix's rendition is fairly straightforward, but it is pretty damn good, and that says a lot when you're covering Black Flag. There was the tribute that came out a few years back on the now defunct Initial Records. It was solid, but it was recently re-released with additional covers that completely tarnish the name of Black Flag. Those bands should take note; this is how you cover Black Flag.
Lyrically, this album is pretty run-of-the-mill. It's got the token scene topic songs, the political and social conscience songs, and the "regret" songs. But at least they have all of those covered; some bands only stick to one topic, which can get boring real quickly. And on the bright side, at least these are lyrics that can be deciphered, unlike The Mars Volta.
Overall, Revenge of the Syringe is a successful first offering for Last Minute Fix. I think it being an EP is what probably helped it out the most, any longer and I think it would have suffered to the fate of being too repetitive. If you were into the more punk years of hardcore before things went metal, then you'd greatly appreciate what Last Minute Fix has to offer.
