reviews
FILE UNDER: Crust-pop-punk
Star Fucking Hipsters - Never Rest In PeaceAlternative Press - Scott Heisel on 10/28/09 @ 7:00 AM - altpress.com
Crust punks Star Fucking Hipsters are newly affiliated with Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles label after a short stint on Fat Wreck Chords. One imagines that transitioning from the best roster in modern melodic punk to an outlet for more ragged, consistently sociopolitical and less accessible acts would lead to a serious upping of the punx, but it's actually transformed the band for the smarter and better. Never Rest In Peace is a more diverse and lighthearted effort than last year's Until We're Dead, and consequently better.
Opener "Vol. II" is a lyrically pointless (yes, we know your band name; we're also aware this is your sophomore LP) but musically curt, thrashy blast of power-violence-nodding rage. "Allergic II Peoples" goes a similar route but throws in half-serious, late-'80s/early-'90s crossover-style gang shouts. SFH deliver a surprisingly melodic romper in "3,000 Miles Away," which actually resembles New Brunswick, New Jersey, pop-punks the Measure [SA] at its outset and adds a bit of Dillinger Four's gravel as it proceeds (check the closing title track for more). The band aren't afraid to continue dirtying things up, as shown by Peace's pulsating, pro-choice mid-album dirge "Church & Rape," or the distortion-bathed ballad that makes "Dreams Are Dead" a restrained standout.
Further providing versatility is Peace's urgent, crackrocksteady ska-punk offering in "The Civilization Show"; showcasing guest vocals from members of Citizen Fish, it conjures up memories of Leftover Crack's 2007 split full-length with CF on Fat Wreck Chords. An almost shocking vibe of bubbly optimism comes along in "Heaven," which features a guest appearance from the Degenerics.
More often than not, Never Rest In Peace is pleasantly familiar and ambitious enough to succeed on its own merits. A couple tracks are throwaways (the dragging, guitar squeal-overdosed "S.F.H. Theme") and not all the songs quite hit home, but Star Fucking Hipsters still have managed a pretty thorough end-result of this album's title and intent. (ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES) Brian Shultz
GO DOWNLOAD: "3,000 Miles Away"
Official Website: http://www.alternativetentacles.com
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