Abrasive Wheels
When The Punks Go Marching In

THE REVIEW

All too often you see my punk-ish reviews posted, I want to clarify that I am not a punk, I don't have a mohawk, I don't have a shaved head, I don't sleep on the streets with a dog, and I don't have my dad's credit card. Often the term hardcore punk (old school) seems to describe music for a few, for a tight circle of people, many will wonder why listen to so much noise, many (especially today's "metalheads") are afraid to approach the genre for fear of divine punishment.

Despite listening to everything, I appreciate Hardcore punk for three simple reasons: simplicity, relevance, and anger; the perfect description for Abrasive Wheels.

I don't want to exaggerate, but I don't think that more than four chords were touched for each song on this album, yet when the record starts, and Shonna begins to shout, I am comforted by the fact that I'm not the only one who's pissed off. Despite the line of nitpickers ready to note the first mistake (they've always existed), Abrasive Wheels continue to smash, actually, destroy their instruments, shouting their heads off and not caring if they were too similar to the Varukers or if their themes had been said over and over by other bands. When I hear "Voice of Youth" I laugh out loud, I'm happy to hear the fury of four unruly Brits who scream into the microphones unaware of the big sound chaos they were recording. That's the beauty of this music, being able to experience simple emotions with the listening of a blunder, an off-beat, and a bad yet honest recording.

It would be out of place to dwell on the musical part since the guitar does nothing extraordinary, as well as the drummer and bassist. Everything revolves around the vocal part, but be careful, I don't want to be misunderstood, it's also of an unprecedented simplicity, but with its hoarse, breathless, and gritty tone it manages to set up that little (Misunderstood? Underrated?) phenomenon that Abrasive Wheels were.

And so, with little gems like "Vicious Circe", "1982", and "Burn'em Down", the album concludes in the best of ways. Just another punk band, as they themselves say, OK, just another punk band that I can recommend to all lovers of the genre.