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The Public

Shibuya Crossing EP

Written by: HES on 01/08/2014 16:20:22

Now I don't listen to old school punk all that much anymore. The regular screaming vocals in the style of Ramones and unchallenging riffs grew boring to me around the time I left high school and have been boring to me up until I listened to The Public's new EP "Shibuya Crossing".

The EP only has six songs all in the short and loud-style. Shortest is the intro "Liquor Store". It is predominantly on the five remaining tracks the band gets me hooked. Whereas "The Breaks" is more of a classically composed punk song in the lighter end of the mood scale, "No Bother" is way more intricate with an instrumental intro that should actually make listeners of any genre stop and listen. The spoken word bridge is almost reminiscent of the doom and gloom'ish sound of The National only to then again be broken up by the energetic verse.

Whereas way too many punk bands rely on nothing but three chords and a whole lot of yelling, The Public manages to mix the simplicity of original punk - just noisy as fuck and straight ahead with intricate guitar details like the riff of "The Dogs". This mix is what places the band right in the only segment of the genre I personally think still has a way of saying something - instead of resorting to being either a gimmick or a copy. In "Mexico" vocalist Josh Voland even shows that his vocal talents stretch far beyond yelling with a detached lower jaw. Overall the almost out of pitch-style of the vocal arrangements of Voland and Steve Graham gives the album a "recorded in someones garage"-feel in just the right moderation. All of these elements make "Shibuya Crossing" as an EP and The Public as a band very interesting.

Download: Mexico, No Bother, The Dogs
For the fans of: Guttermouth, The Holy Mess, The Flatliners
Listen: Bandcamp

Release date 13.06.2014
Self-released