| ⭐⭐✨ |
Versatility is the name of the game when it comes to The Armed. Not just known for their blistering screamo, they soften things up if need be. They layer cleans with shrieks, they sprinkle sparse electronics into their already eclectic mix, they work in elements of garage and noise and psych, even jazz occasionally. The problem with The Armed, is that the way their albums are produced lets the actual music down. Ultrapop could’ve been one of the most vivid hardcore releases of 2021, except the riffs, drums and vocals all got squished into a clipping sandwich that made it difficult to decipher much. It’s one thing to be overwhelmingly heavy, it’s another to bring that level of intensity without sacrificing quality.
While The Future Is Here certainly tries to ease up on the claustrophobia, it still reads a little too much like everything and the kitchen sink. Hardcore punk meets soft boy indie rock meets metallic screamo meets noise music, and none of them feel comfortable sitting in the same room. Instead of these influences co-mingling, they sound like they’re trying to stay as far away as physically possible. The result is a barely cohesive mash of determined fury that loses its confidence suddenly and at various points. ‘Grace Obscure’ for instance is firing on all cylinders instrumentally. D-beat hardcore dialed up to 11, searing and barely recognisable guitars jammed in sideways for extra noise, and the vocals are a confounding canon of screams, cleans and soaring female harmonies. Nothing to tie it together other than a brick of a mix and a hope that you’re wowed by the calamity.
The Prostitute feature on this album should’ve been fireworks. Instead, it sounds like the band tried to light them up without a permit, and they shot off sideways into a wall somewhere and caused a blaze. An unintentional damaging of an opportunity. It sounds like Moe Kazra is trying to do a piece of chilling spoken word poetry while Tony Wolski is having a temper tantrum in the background. It comes off as a goofy skit, rather than an actually compelling piece of noise rock. Thankfully the following ‘Sharp Teeth’ actually nails its attempt at a blend of hard and soft. The disparate singing styles never work at odds. They compliment each other like they should have been doing from the start. There are distinct sections that serve their own purpose within the song’s macro. It’s trim too, only 2 and a half minutes to go as hard as possible. It’s an oasis.
‘I Steal What I Want’ has potential to be a decent piece of punk rock. Again though, what really holds this back from being genuinely great is muddy production. It’s a constant kneecap for the rest of the album as well. Not only that, but none of the riff ideas translate into anything that sticks. The Armed rely on effects and distortion play that tricks listeners into thinking something else is happening. Take all that away, and you’re left with something relatively toothless. It’s all spectacle and smoke and pyrotechnics. The Armed will graduate to something better when they actually figure out how to make these songs count. As it stands though, they waste runtime on non-starters, very rarely striking gold. To be honest, even when they do, it feels more like the broken clock analogy.
Dan Will Review 