Sound Salvation Army

I’ve never really been a huge fan of so-called “positive hardcore” or the seemingly growing trend of punk bands that focus on a “posi” message. Call me cynical, say I have a dour world-view, but I find music inspiring enough without cloying lyrical treatises. Like Christian punk, “posi” bands generally seem to rely on a pastiche of trite lyrical tropes that feel more like posturing than anything and almost never succeed in saying something new.

Having started out on a severely non-posi bent, lets turn things around. There’s a lot of really good things happening on Anchor Down’s new EP, Steel To Dust. The sophisticated songwriting on this album should easily position them as the standout act on their record label, the universally-posi Solidarity Recordings.

The arrangements are severely melodic, bringing to mind the work of pop-punk luminaries like Jawbreaker or Dillinger Four and new-school heroes like the Lawrence Arms. They’re varied and clever enough to constantly demand your attention, but without having to rely on neck-snapping tempo changes like A Wilhelm Scream or the gothic machinations of Alkaline Trio. The quartet boasts two seriously capable guitar players that have crafted some engaging tunes with sharp hooks, all buoyed by some muscular riffing.

Lyrically, however, things are not quite as strong. Don’t get me wrong — they do a fairly marvelous job of saying something outside of what one might expect in the posi-core genre. There is a fair amount of genuine self-reflection and insight contained within, which is good. But there are also occasional missteps where the words just don’t quite seem to add up (like in “Bromancing The Stone,” featuring a somewhat-clumsy attempt to craft something new out of the old “skeletons in my closet” metaphor). “World War I” particularly comes not only dangerously close to the more-predictable trappings of posi-core bands, but some of the lyrics and phrasing are also clearly cribbed quite heavily from the Gaslight Anthem’s early releases. It feels the least organic of the half-dozen songs here and most starkly displays some of their songwriting influences.

As you may have read earlier in this site’s history Solidarity is a brand new label started up by an extremely nice and decent fellow who clearly has a knack for discovering extremely talented young bands that are really starting to find their sound and set themselves apart. Anchor Down is a hell of a find and the two should have a long, prosperous relationship.

 

 Anchor Down - Bromancing The Stone: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Solidarity has got itself an actual website for purchasing records! Excellent! You can also find their stuff at several other distros. It’s been released on CD and digital, as well as good ol’ iTunes.

But seriously, young punk bands, can we cut it out with the ‘anchor’ band names already? Anchor, Anchor Down, Anchor Arms, Anchor Set, Anchors Away…its a bit exhausting.

Pat entries Anchor Down, melodic rock, posi, punk rock, Solidarity Recordings