ARTIST:
> Liquid Sisters
ALBUM:
> Fuck That Shit
GENRE:
> punk / rock
PUBLISHER:
> self-released
YEAR:
> 2009
FORMAT:
> Pro-CDR
TOTAL PLAYTIME:
> 7:25
[01]Welfare State Illusion
[02]Destroy
[03]Rectal Rodeo
AUTHOR:
> M
The all-female band Liquid Sisters was formed drunk in '08, and soon became a more-or-less serious band with the intention to, I quote, "turn the universe into a "Liquid Society", where there are no borders, racism, poverty and fucking narrow minded people". This is their debut release, and it was published in '09. The songs are a bit over two minutes in lenght each.
One thing is sure from the start: this band can create noise. The music combines the noisiness and lofi-aesthetics of punk and the attitude of rock. It has rather simplistic drums reminding me of punk-rock, and the riffs are at least somewhat close to simpler rock for most of the time, aside of the occasional guitar solos and playing around with the feedback. The bass guitar has a nice groovy touch to it, and it really gives the songs' flow a nice kick. The main vocals are mostly spoken ones with some shouting (with occasional help from a megaphone), and the backing vocals are more aggressive shouts and screams. The sounds are nicely clear while still retaining the rawness - especially the guitars are pleasantly raw. The vocals have a damp, lo-fi touch to them, and while it makes them just slightly less audible it gives them a nice feeling and makes them fit in better. The spoken vocals aren't still too interesting, though, as they sound (intentionally?) spiritless.
Song number one is evidently the "hit song" of this record - it has the most straightforward riffing, a really catchy chorus that's bound to get the audience shouting, a short mid-part with drums and bass only in the end to bring a nice (albeit rather basic) twist to the song. It also has some interesting spices in the form of solo-likes in the background provided by the second guitar, so the song doesn't get dull in a while. It has an even rebellious touch, believe it or not. The second song isn't nearly as catchy as it's guitars are more constant and less varying. It's overall very repetitive structure-wise, and as it's chorus isn't too appealing and you'll get to hear it many many times, the song doesn't have much of an edge. The song relies on the bass' groove and the guitars playing around with the distortion; these things make the song sound nice, sure, but it just doesn't seem to really catch on at any point. The song is nicely less "usual" than the first one, though. The last song, as it's name might imply, is a lot less serious one with it's western-style guitars and "yeehaw"-shouts. It's simple structure and the downright relying on humour doesn't make the song very long-lasting. It's nature is bound to annoy some people who've bought this release expecting to hear something raw and more serious, so be warned.
Visually the release is pleasing when thinking about the style, and while I'm not exactly sure what the band was going for with this (or the song number three, for that matter), it works. I guess the band is trying to underline the fact that they're not a girl band, but a band of women. The only thing I'm missing is the lyrics, even though they're rather audible. The lyrics are about rebellion, the state's lies, greed, and a bit about drinking and humour.
This is not a bad effort, not at all, especially for a first release. The band seems to know how to compose good songs and how to bring variation to them, and they aren't afraid of so-called genre boundaries. They seem to have found their direction already, up to the lyrics and even the visual side. So what's next? Refining their output overall; creating a better balance between the instruments, bringing more "soul" to the vocals, and overall trying to find their own field or style which they want to go for, as now their style is a bit too much based on humour and I don't think it'll last for too long. They should also figure out that which do they want to pursue more: the catchy and melodic line of song one, or the less conventional and slightly experimental, less catchy line of song number two. All the three songs fit somewhat together on a release this short, but bouncing from one style to another like this would be very harmful on a longer record.
If the EP had a plot that carried all the way through it, it would be great, but even in this form it's very promising. As of now it's just very difficult to know what style the band is actually trying to promote. Do keep an eye on this band.