There seems to be no stopping the New York music scene, as so many top bands keep being found there. Not that Blood On The Wall have just come off the production line – Liferz is the trio’s third full-length release – but they’re indicative of an artistic culture where anyone can get a break if they’re good enough.
Pointless blather aside, BOTW are an explosive, loud-mouthed experiment in how much they can wear their influences on their sleeves without being accused of ripping off past greats. Liferz claims to be the more diverse, branched out albums of their three, but having never heard the other two, I can only judge this one on its own merit. And it’s not half bad.
The really good thing about this record is that it doesn’t try to be anything it’s not. BOTW are a punk band who’ve grown up listening to Sonic Youth, Pixies and all the other forefathers of edgy rock music; and Liferz reflects this pretty accurately. Take Junkeee…Julieee… for example: it sounds like the forgotten collaboration between the Sex Pistols and Led Zeppelin. There’s nothing really new there and BOTW know that, but they play with such an ‘up yours’ punk attitude that it works.
They do mix it up a bit though. The Ditch is a Von Bondies-type droney number, while the hooky Rize will almost certainly get your toes tapping. Maybe it is their diverse, expansive album after all.
There’s not much nonsense about this New York three-piece and you certainly get a feel for that on this record. It’s good output, but three albums into their career, is Liferz going to be enough to take them from American scenesters to international stars? Probably not.
Jimmy Bollard