Article By: Pat ‘Riot’ Whitaker ‡ Edited By: Leanne Ridgeway
It has been almost a year since I tackled reviewing last year’s release from MISCONDUCTERS, ‘Pariah‘, [HERE] at Riff Relevant.
Now the band is back with some fresh blood and a new EP, ‘Reanimated‘, which will officially drop on September 11th. Joining founding guitarist / vocalist Denfire on the five-song album are bassist Mr. Blue Note and drummer Tony King, and the trio is making everything seem new again.
Not just the MISCONDUCTERS band itself either, because these tracks are actually new takes on compositions from earlier releases. Yet, right there is where the past ends because you would never know that fact unless you were already a fan of the band’s and familiar with their history.
As always, from past to present, MISCONDUCTERS deliver a furious assault of crossover metal that ripples with an old-school attitude. Songs like “Unleash” and “Stagnant” are neck-wrecking salvos on angst-laden, guitar-driven aggression. They rip and tear away at your ears from their speaker-based location, powered by a constant avalanche of rapidly-discharged drums.
Like an ever-careening locomotive of brash, punk-infused, middle finger-in-your-face volatility, a song like “Deceived” recalls the bygone era of acts like Dead Boys or early Agnostic Front. You can hear the venomous disgust in Denfire’s vocals as it melds with the explosive guitar licks he delivers to accompany that verbalized antipathy.
A song like the EP’s closing track, “No More“, is as much a mission statement as it is a working title. No more taking society’s bullshit, no more tolerating mass scale stupidity, no more refraining from sticking it to The Establishment… no more damned anything but the music.
Or maybe I’m just reading too much into things, ha! Who knows or cares, really. Just know this: MISCONDUCTERS have come to rock, and rock they shall, whether you like it or not. Get with it or get the hell outta the way!
Check out the new lyric video for the song “Control Evasion” below, and find pre-order / purchase options for the ‘Reanimated‘ EP [HERE].
