ZapTown

65daysofstatic
Escape From New York
Monotreme records
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Links:

65daysofstatic homepage: http://www.65daysofstatic.com/
Monotreme Records: http://www.monotremerecords.com/

In a series of performances supporting a virtually unknown band from England called The Cure (has anyone ever  heard of them?), 65daysoftatic recorded a number of tracks that appear on Escape from New York, from the Madison Square Gardens and Radio City Music Hall gigs.

65dos is an instrumental, electronic, alternative math post-rock band hailing from England. Falling somewhere in intensity between Aphex Twin and The Prodigy, the band uses heavy doses of vocal and noise sampling, distorted guitars, synthesizers and 808 drums (techno fans will understand that reference) to pack its release full of sound. Powerful, in-your-face, and rather well-crafted, 65dos apparently plays out with intensity not often seen in this genre.

One track that really sticks in my head is “Retreat! Retreat!” The equivalent of the chorus to this song is a great repeating melody that sounds like it is the music from some of the great melodic post-hardcore bands. The notable exception, of course, would be the lack of vocals and presence of electronic samples.

So many electronic bands have so much in common, and fans just accept this fact. This is fine, except that if one has a few releases in the genre, one really needn’t buy more than that; they’ve heard it all. 65daysofstatic is a rare exception to this group. The genre also doesn’t tend to lend itself well to live performances, but this release is a powerful testament to what can be done.

Other tracks to check out would be “Drove Through Ghosts to Get Here” (one of the best song titles I’ve ever heard), “No Use Crying Over a Little Techno,” and “Fix the Sky a Little.”

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