Review
Trash Talk
Eyes And Nines

Over the five years of their existence, Trash Talk has been consistently evolving and changing with each release. With Eyes And Nines, their newest full-length, the band shows their top-notch progression once again.

Produced by Joby Ford of The Bronx, Eyes And Nines pulls no punches as far as getting right to the grit of this record. “Vultures” starts out the album with a ferocious mid-tempo beat alongside wah-pedal-laden guitar parts and a different vocal approach from frontman Lee Spielman. The second track, “Flesh And Blood”, finally brings about the fast and furious speeds that Trash Talk has become infamous for. About a minute in, the song slows to a crushing 6/8 time signature that leaves the listener floored. The single “Explode” follows, an extremely structured song that is living proof of the band’s evolution in sound and songwriting. The bridge features an uncharacteristic chord progression that borders on dirty rock and roll, accompanied by guest vocals from The Bronx's Matt Caughthran: “From the peak of Mount Vesuvius/To the deepest depths at Dome of the Rock/Nothing can save you if you want it or not”. The song repeats its chorus once more and is suddenly over.

The pace is slowed with the doom-laden “Hash Wednesday”. While it rings reminiscent of the band’s previous slow tracks, its familiarity is masked by the unique lyrics and vocal attack of bassist Spencer Pollard: “Jesus is in me at a premium price/Jesus is in me/I am the body of Christ”. Trash Talk picks the album back up with the slamming “Envy/More”, with a dueling vocal onslaught between Spielman and Pollard. “Rabbit Holes” is more of the classic Trash Talk sound, pairing blasting drums with circle pit paces and a slow breakdown under a train whistle. The ending is pretty trippy compared to other tracks on the album, and gives it that extra punishing layer.

The songs “I Do” and “Trudge” lead right into one another, reaching only two minutes and thirty-six seconds between the tracks. They keep the album fast and unforgiving, with the blistering speeds and raw vocals we have come to expect from the band. The final two tracks, “On A Fix” and the title track of the effort, offer more of the constant circle pits and are surprisingly a good way to top off the record. “Eyes And Nines” are ferocious and finally break with the lyrics “There’s no place for me anymore in the heavens and there’s no room in hell” into a slow and driving drum part that leads to the end of the album.

With their self-titled full-length, I was very unsettled about what the quality of this new album would be, but the gruff but polished production value of Eyes And Nines fits the songs perfectly and keeps the album listenable. The production team of Joby Ford, Dave Schiffman and Beau Burchell did a great job at giving these songs exactly what they needed behind the board and really put a solid touch on it. Eyes And Nines is seventeen minutes and twenty-nine seconds of raw power you’ll certainly want to experience.