Review / 200 Words Or Less
Powerplant
A Spine/Evidence EP

Static Shock Records (2020) Mirza

Powerplant – A Spine/Evidence EP cover artwork
Powerplant – A Spine/Evidence EP — Static Shock Records, 2020

Elvis fronting Joy Division, That was the first thing that came to mind when the first song on this five song EP kicked off. Then my thoughts continued on to Gallon Drunk’s punk blues. Deep, brooding and slow and it actually sounds a bit different to the remaining quartet. Theo Zhykharyev is crooning like some drunk, evil Elvis (not Danzig!) and then all of a sudden you get the added spice of horror keyboards thrown in. Quirky and intriguing, but as I said, a bit different to the remaining songs while still retaining a clear sound of their own. Opener "A Spine" has a more dance friendly vibe and from then on things go to being a lot more energetic and even mosh friendly, culminating in the almost hardcore-like "Hurlwood", which to me brings back memories of the glorious Murder City Devils. But the pick of the bunch is number three, "Evidence", because the simple synth beat makes you want to dance i a London dive bar and drink cheap cider.

The recording project has gone from being a one man operation run by Zhykaryev to a full live line-up after last year’s LP People in the Sun. Keep a close eye on them and grab your self a copy of this simple beauty.

7.0 / 10Mirza • June 8, 2020

Powerplant – A Spine/Evidence EP cover artwork
Powerplant – A Spine/Evidence EP — Static Shock Records, 2020

Related features

Powerplant

One Question Interviews • February 8, 2021

Related news

Powerplant's Grass

Posted in Records on June 17, 2023

Recently-posted album reviews

Steamachine

City of Death
Records Workshop (2023)

City Of Death is the third album from Polish noise makers Steamachine. Having dabbled in a few metal styles over their career, City Of Death has a heavy carnival influence to it which I have to say I really like. It's interesting just how much more sinister things sound when you pump eerie, jingly circus sounds amongst very dark, heavy, … Read more

Faulty Cognitions

Somehow, We Are Here
Cercle Social Records (2024)

The opening track on Somehow, We Are Here is a statement. Yes, Faulty Cognitions is a punk band with members of Low Culture, Shang-A-Lang, Nocturnal Prose,and more. Yes, this shares a lot of commonalities, but it’s also a new band with a new sound. The band humbly says they were going for an early, jangly R.E.M. vibe but self-confess that it has more of a Replacements thing going on … Read more

Lussuria

Under Crumbled Stairs
Hospital Productions (2024)

Jim Mroz is no stranger to the darkest dungeons of the human mind. These locked doors of the psyche are a common destination for his project Lussuria, through which Mroz has quietly amassed an impeccable discography. And so another immersive chapter of harrowing music sprouts forth with Under Crumbled Stairs, with Lussuria extending their phantom limbs to touch upon numerous sonic … Read more