THE ASSASSINATIONS
"Future Blasts
from the Past"
(Hasheshin; 2008)
Reviewed by Metal Mark
Ghazi Barakat has long been a figure in the underground music scene of Berlin. This is the first release on his label. The music here was actually recorded in a space of months between late 2006 and early 2007. However, it was not released until just recently.
The idea here seems to be to grab past styles like garage rock, 70s classic rock and even 80s hard rock then combine the styles and give them a modern twist. I understand that and can even grant them some respect for the undertaking. However, this is one of those cases where the idea looks good in print, but the final results don't pan out.
I can appreciate the fuzzed out tones and some of the raw old style glam bits got my attention as well. The problem was that the album comes across as not having enough to hold my attention. They tried to attach a lot of ideas, but never really fleshed out enough of anything to grab onto. It's even dull at times as they just did not create the hooks and twists needed to really sustain their material. Although they have some diverse sounds included they definitely lack structure. Without a strong structure the music just kind of sits there and so did I waiting for them to put some punch into it. Pretty much what you got in the first thirty seconds of each song was all you were going to get.
The Assassinations just kind of float into their songs
and then just ride it out to the end with very few switches or changes. That's a
shame because there were some good ideas and sounds on this album, but they just
didn't expand on what they started.
For more information, check out
http://www.myspace.com/therassassinations.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright ? 2009 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised:
01 Jul 2024 12:10:25 -0400.
