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Spit Rusty

Tin Foil Hats & Magic

Written by: PP on 14/01/2015 23:45:52

Århus, Denmark based rockers Spit Rusty have released a couple of EPs prior to their debut full-length "Tin Foil Hats & Magic", which was unveiled a few months ago. Their previous EP from late 2012 was quite a refreshing take on modern grunge rock on the national scene, even if it did suffer from the classic 50/50 syndrome where only about half of the songs were excellent and rest were more anonymous. That same inconsistency unfortunately follows through on their debut, where about half of the songs are strong entries on the dirtily distorted grunge rock scene, and the rest probably should've been left off to leave this as their third EP instead.

Take opener "Givin' It All". This is a great example of a strong opening track which displays all of their strengths in one groovy package. It's a muscular track that looks back at the playful guitars of Stone Temple Pilots with the knack for charismatic vocal work by rowdy vocalists like those by Soundgarden or Alice In Chains. It's catchy and convincing with solid riffage throughout that immediately suggests Spit Rusty are onto something. But straight away afterwards "Underwhelmed" gives exactly the sort of vibe its title suggests thanks to unnecessary experimentation with melodic doom elements within their sound. The same continues on "Nothing Comes Across", quickly making it clear that the darker and slower tracks are certainly not ones where Spit Rusty songs are at their best. Instead, the chunky guitars and energetic atmosphere of songs like "An Uphill Battle" and "I Don't Need To" are where the band are at their very best.

Sadly, the majority of "Tin Foil Hats & Magic" comes off merely as derivative of past greats within the grunge rock scene. There are regrettably few instances of Spit Rusty showing they belong to the big leagues, leaving the vast majority of the record feeling anonymous and forgettable in comparison. Despite only being forty-five minutes long, it feels like a never-ending experience because hits are few and far in between. They would've been better off cutting the 12 tracks down to a five song EP instead.

Download: Givin' it All, I Don't Need To
For the fans of: Stone Temple Pilots, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, Jane's Addiction
Listen: Facebook

Release date 16.08.2014
Self-Released