A couple of years ago I had the pleasure of seeing Off With
Their Heads live at the Fighting Cocks in Kingston. One of the support acts
were local act Resuscitators. I remember from the very start being extremely
impressed by these four guys playing their own anthemic brand of skate punk.
The songs were full of interesting hooks and Ioved that all four members of the
band took turns singing and created some excellent harmonies. In January this
year they released a brand new EP named Make It Through Another Night, I
checked it out.
The first song on the EP is called Jaws Of Life and it took
me slightly by surprise with the ska punk tinge in the introduction. Then the
vocals kick I’m instantly in love with the sound. They are delivered in a fast
and slightly chaotic manor, really hitting home each word to make a strong
point. Hopefully the Resuscitators guys won’t hate me for saying this but the
vocal is never especially strong, even for a punk band but I loved this. It
reminds of one of the reasons I love punk rock music, because it’s an everyman
genre of music where you don’t need to be “the best” you just need to have a
passion for the music, something shown in abundance here. We Are The Sons And
Daughters Of GG Allin (which I think is a play on the Red City Radio song We
Are The Sons And Daughters Of Woody Guthrie) is about the struggles of being in
a small band and how getting to play shows, even if it’s to a mostly empty room
is the most satisfying thing in the world. The song builds slowly at the start
and comes to life with a fantastic fade in primal scream and some great work
from the bass and drums. The third song is called Stronger Drinks. This is
another fantastically chaotic song with vocals seeming coming from ever.
I imagine the next song Little Victories is a great opener
for live sets. Starting out with gang vocals shouting out “We’ve Got Bottles,
We’ve Got Petrol, We’ve Got Nothing Better To Do Tonight” you can just see a
crowd getting involved, shouting along with fists in the air. There feels like
there is a bit more control in this song but again the multiple vocals make you
wonder what’s going to happen next. The excellently title The Ataris Ruined My
So Called Sex Life comes next. Beginning with some loud crunching guitars this
is another more controlled and mature song. The song is a cry for help when you
feel lost and alone after a loss in your life. Like I can see Little Victories
as a great opening song I can see this song being a great song to finish a set
on. The use of harmonies down the finishing straight of the song are as strong As
I’ve heard from any band this year. Make
It Through The Night finishes with a nice acoustic version of the song W.W.P.D.
which originally featured on Resuscitators first EP Black Label. It’s good to
see that the band can strip things back and play a more serious sound. Even
though the song isn’t strictly all acoustic, the full band come in halfway
through the track it really shows how talented the band are as a group of
musicians.
Resuscitators are one of the best kept secrets in the UKs
underground punk scene. I really like that they do play straight forward punk
music but it’s also has their own unique sound to it. If you hear a Resuscitators
song played, you can instantly tell that it is the Resuscitators, a true sign
of a great band.
Stream and buy the EP here: https://resuscitators.bandcamp.com/album/make-it-through-another-night
For more Resuscitators info go here: https://www.facebook.com/resuscitatorsband
Now listening to Boys On The Docks by Dropkick Murhpys
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