Meat Wave deliver their strongest work to date on Delusion Moon, an album on which dissonance meets velocity, conveying the madness of modern times through skilful crashes, bangs and booms while carrying a tune. The band maintain their blistering post-hardcore here, but add a bit more range.
The title track is a thick, dreamy wall of sound that waxes and wanes, never breaking, a Doughboys-esque track that stands in stark contrast to the others here. The messy, clanging dissonance and rumbling bass on "Network" brings Die! Die! Die! and Hot Snakes to mind, and these vibes run strongly throughout, especially on the relentless strumming and racing breakdowns of "Vacation" and "NRA." Though the vocals sometimes evoke NOFX back in their prime, this isn't pop punk. The songs are more interesting and less formulaic, akin to the approaches of Q and Not U and No Knife.
The galloping, triumphant "I Was Wrong" is so forceful it might bust your speakers, "Cosmic Zoo" nods to post-punk and the moving "Reunion" is tender and melodic yet pummelling. It's "Sinkhole" that best showcases the band's leaps forward on this record, demonstrating self-assurance, dynamics and clarity of purpose.
(Side One Dummy)The title track is a thick, dreamy wall of sound that waxes and wanes, never breaking, a Doughboys-esque track that stands in stark contrast to the others here. The messy, clanging dissonance and rumbling bass on "Network" brings Die! Die! Die! and Hot Snakes to mind, and these vibes run strongly throughout, especially on the relentless strumming and racing breakdowns of "Vacation" and "NRA." Though the vocals sometimes evoke NOFX back in their prime, this isn't pop punk. The songs are more interesting and less formulaic, akin to the approaches of Q and Not U and No Knife.
The galloping, triumphant "I Was Wrong" is so forceful it might bust your speakers, "Cosmic Zoo" nods to post-punk and the moving "Reunion" is tender and melodic yet pummelling. It's "Sinkhole" that best showcases the band's leaps forward on this record, demonstrating self-assurance, dynamics and clarity of purpose.