New Fag Static LP is refreshingly dark
June 23rd, 2008 by Chad Radford in Music news
Fag Static guitarist Ian Deaton sent me a text message this weekend to tell me that the test pressings for the group’s new LPs are back and that one with my name on it is waiting for me at The Majestic on Ponce.
I picked it up Sunday afternoon and it hasn’t left my turntable since. The new record, titled Ficcanaso brings a much needed change of pace for Atlanta. This town’s music scenes are as separate and distinct as its neighborhoods, and let’s face it, the only real neighborhood around these parts that’s been on the upswing over the last few years has been the sloppy garage and punk rock bastions that have thrived in the wake of the Black Lips’ success.
Hardcore died a long time ago, and as so much simple, ramshackle rock and roll has been the face of Atlanta for so long, everything else has felt like a neglected stepchild. But the arrival of Ficcanaso signals a change on the horizon.
There isn’t truly a categorical home for Fag Static. The group draws from elements of hardcore, grindcore, artcore and judging by the song titles on the new album, Italian horror film scores.
The group features 1/2 of the original line-up of former ATL post-hardcore saving grace, Blame Game. And while there is no denying that Blame Game was a fantastic band, the group couldn’t resist sinking into a mire of uptight and prog-ish guitar worship that, by the end of the its time, had blunted any sense of spontaneity from the music. Fag Static doesn’t make the same mistakes. There is plenty of open space to roam around between the growling vocals, rapid fire drumming and quick pace of the music.
The first song on the b-side, “il Scoperta” is creepy in the most addictive way imaginable, and the balance of warm washes of tones and drones that are constantly at odds with an all out aural assault shows an incredible amount of growth on the group’s part.
The real action is in the guitar work, which relies more on mood and setting an atmosphere, rather than showing off over-the-top technical proficiency. There is just enough of a balance of noise, scrape and structure tussling between the guitar and the rhythm section to blur the lines and keep the record moving at a head-nodding pace.
These factors guide the pieces into place. There is an overall theme at work here, but what it is for sure, I have not yet figured out.
But what I do know is that it is refreshing to hear a local band churning out such an aggressive and art-driven sound that doesn’t rely on noise, slop or art spew to deliver a complex record that attacks both the brain and the guts, and jitters with darkness and natural resonance.
The record’s release date is set for Saturday, July 12. The group is pressing the LP on its own dime, but a CD will surface from Stickfigure Records later this summer.
Track List:
Ficcanaso
Side A
1.) il Lavoro
2.) Off But On
3.) Bywater
4.) House Boats
5.) Holes in Spring
6.) Lost in a Trainyard
Side B
7.) il Scoperta
8.) Precipitation
9.) Growing Men
10.) Landscape Blue
11.) Holographic Fragmentation
12.) Annegato
June 25th, 2008 at 9:06 am
OK…so hardcore is dead. Check. My question is how are the artcore, grindcore and post-hardcore scenes doing? Is fag static keeping them alive?