Hardcore Punk Has Champion In Cause
Cause
“Consumerism” - Nervous Wreckords 7-inch
Hardcore punk was frequently employed by disenfranchised youths during the Reagan years. The music, thunderous and confrontational, was fueled by government distrust, social disgust and often called for change.
The hardcore movement, which was led by bands like Judge and Gorilla Biscuits, was mostly about the message. The music, though volatile, lacked substance and was often marred by the conventions of heavy metal.
Spokane’s Cause represents everything good about the genre and then some. The young quartet, barely out of high school, has lots to say in its four songs and makes its points rather strongly, even if the band’s lyrics are sometimes ridden with hardcore cliches. Musically, Cause is tight and furious and outdoes most of their predecessors. I can’t wait to hear the band when they’re a little older and wiser.
More snappy packaging (a photocopied cover) might enhance sales, but then again hardcore was never about aesthetics.
This vinyl slab is well worth picking up.
Justin Johnson
“The Footstep Going Home” - Self-released cassette
Singer/songwriter Justin Johnson hails from Marcus, Wash. And as you’d expect from a musician living in a quiet, small town, his acousticbased songs are simple, mellow and reflective.
The subject matter of “The Footstep Going Home” mainly focuses on life experiences and the environment. For the most part, this album is fairly good and if you’re a fan of the genre you might get enamored.
Yet the tape does have a couple of blemishes. First, Johnson seems to love the sound of his throaty, feely feely voice.
On “Just A Little Of Your Time,” he croons a little too hard, drawing out some of the notes more than necessary and taking just a little too much of our time.
Secondly, his pleas to save the environment in “Wild Wilderness” hark to the pretentious environmental folk songs of John Denver.
One of the highlight’s of “Footsteps” is the track “Mariachi Moonlight,” a Jimmy Buffet-style country/calypso tune.
No Way Out
“No Way Out” - Take 69 CD
Why are so many Spokane rock bands fixated by the 1980s?
For No Way Out, there seems to be no way out of the decade, which produced a glut of synth-soaked, B-movie-type rock and heart-jerking ballads.
What’s funny is the sample of the Homer Simpson’s frustrated expression “Doughh!” halfway through the album seems rather symbolic of this.
To the band’s credit, No Way Out isn’t trying to fool anyone with its music. Rather, the foursome seems to be playing music it enjoys and does well. Isn’t that what being in a band is all about?
It is if you’re not looking to sign a million-dollar deal. “Promises” is the stand-out track of the bunch.
The one real sore spot on this disc is a cover of the Clash’s “Should I Stay Or Should I Go.”
No Way Out is about as detached from punk rock as Newt Gingrich is from the Democratic party. Plus, this song is played to death by nearly every cover band in the city.
National album reviews from Billboard
Doug Supernaw
“You Still Got Me” - Giant
Good bedrock country from underrated talent Doug Supernaw.
He’s also developing his writing chops (he co-wrote the title cut), and he and producer Richard Landis have a good ear for solid songs from the likes of Jim Lauderdale, Keith Stegall, Roger Murrah, and Frank Dycus.
Clay Walker
“Hypnotize The Moon” - Giant
Walker is a big-voiced Texas singer with smart song selection and a minimalist honky-tonk production.
He sounds unassuming until you realize that’s what he’s all about. He gets in your yard without ever getting in your face.
Very intelligent use of fiddle and steel here.
Ken Mellons
“Where Forever Begins” - Epic
Very forceful traditional country by a strong-voiced young singer who not only carries on the tradition of George Jones and John Anderson, he actually roped both veterans into singing with him on the classic drunk song “He’ll Never Be A Lawyer.”
His song selection is sure, and his delivery is easy but authoritative.
Mellons is a sure bet for success as a honky-tonk singer.
Various artists
“Soundtrack: Leaving Las Vegas” - Pangaea/I.R.S.
Nearly as sublime as the film it accompanies, the “Leaving Las Vegas” soundtrack rolls beauty and pathos into a winning combination.
The main draw here are Sting’s affecting renditions of the standards “My One And Only Love,” “It’s A Lonesome Old Town,” and, especially, “Angel Eyes,” in which he wrings deep, dark emotion without once succumbing to sentimentality.