Refuse Resist

Socialized

Written by: PP on 15/07/2010 00:54:39

Hardcore is frequently criticized for being overtly simple and one-dimensional by those not into the genre. That's why it's necessary to have bands like Refuse Resist swing by occasionally to let these people know that being simple and one-dimensional is okay, as long as your songs are geared towards "old school sing alongs", to quote Mr Issa of Good Clean Fun, who incidentally rely on exactly the same principles in their sound as Refuse Resist. Therefore it's not surprising to discover Good Clean Fun to be the band bearing closest resemblance to these boys, who, by the way, count well known people like Steve Risteen (Slapshot) and Mark Powers (The Welch Boys) within the lineup.

The songs mostly consist of three-chord punk/hardcore and big shout-along choruses. You'll also find parallels to the Oi! hardcore scene, but for the most part it's very straight-forward and to the point hardcore with no additional bullshit. The vocalist shares more than just a little resemblance to Mr Issa, as can be heard on "Comeback", which could've easily been on "Between Christian Rock And A Hard Place", or on "One Life" where the snarly vocal melody is almost identical to the one used by Issa on all Good Clean Fun songs. But then again, Mr Issa sounds just like the dude from Slapshot so you draw your own conclusions here. However, these two are the two highlight tracks on the album because they're just a tad bit more melodic than the rest. In fact, it's the lack of melody and/or shout-alongs that leaves a song like "Pick Up The Pieces" a little too anonymous for my liking. "Middle America", the opening track of the album, is another melody blast that sticks to mind after just a couple of listens.

Overall though, the ratio between the solid and the average isn't as good as one's left hoping after a strong start to the disc. Luckily, the album never strays over to the below average/bad department, after all, writing three chord punk rock with decent choruses isn't that difficult compared to so many other genres. But when Refuse Resist get it right, they're exactly the simple, straight-forward hardcore example you want to show your non-hardcore friends in order to demonstrate that good stuff exists in this genre, too.

Download: One life, Comeback, Middle America, IRS
For the fans of: Good Clean Fun, Slapshot
Listen: Myspace

Release date 17.05.2010
I Scream Records / Warner

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