When a band reunites there is always a loss of something. Sometimes the loss is tremendous and the band embarrasses themselves. Sometimes the loss is so small that only a purist prick like myself would notice. The latter is true with the new 16 album “Bridges To Burn”. This isn’t the 16 that crafted the amazing record “Drop Out” but this freshly reunited line up still makes music that pounds your face into hamburger, but in a really groovy way.
16 haven’t lost any of the misanthropic bitterness with Bridges nor have they stopped straddling the line between sludge and groove. Things are always frenetic in a 16 song as if you were invited into a psychopath’s mind to walk around for an hour. The music slithers through multiple genres and mixes things together that shouldn’t work at all. A pure 80s hardcore breakdown will come out of a doom metal riff or a thrash riff will decimate itself until just the rock/blues root remains. Entropy is alive and well in the world of 16 and each song proves it by deconstructing itself and then reducing that until the only thing left is a primal catharsis of pain.
Nobody can echo pain, misery, confusion and despair like 16 vocalist Cris Jerue. This is the voice of a man who has to vomit his soul out in every word he barks. Nothing here is pretentious or flowery, this is the straight hatred and misery we all feel in our souls being spat out at full volume. When Jerue sings a line like “I can’t wait until it rains/I can’t wait to open the veins” or “You made me suffer/Now we hate each other” you not only believe him but you can relate. The lyrics may not be specifically aimed at you but Jerue attacks his vocals with such honesty you read yourself into them.
Sonically Bridges comes from the same dark place the vocals do. The sound of the new 16 album is dirty but still crisp, not surprising from a band that orchestrates contradictions and then spins them into songs. So much of heavy music today is either over-produced or under-produced sounding either mechanical or like a child with a Fisher Price radio recorded them. With 16 you hear everything from the kick drum to the bass, nothing is lost underneath the fuzzed out guitar tones yet the fuzz is allowed to breathe and grow through every song. This constant battle of styles is what has allowed 16 to largely avoid being branded as any particular style.
Are there problems with the new 16 album? Sure there are, mainly with length. 16 could’ve said what they needed to say perfectly in 10 songs so this being a 12-song record it begins to feel a little long and a laborious. Realistically my problems with the new 16 record come mainly from being a huge fan of the band for so long they could never fully live up to what I expect. Bridges To Burn is pretty damn close and I’m hoping they stay together long enough to show the rest of the world how it’s done.
Wino: Punctuated Equilibrium
Scott “Wino” Weinrich is a legend and a hero. Imagine underground doom metal’s answer to Lemmy from Motorhead and you’ll begin to understand his greatness. From the classic band Obsessed to Spirit Caravan and The Hidden Hand the man has always turned out groovy ass kicking songs to get high to. Now that he’s stepped out on his own the good times flow even nicer than before.
Punctuated Equilibrium is Wino’s first full on solo record and after spending so long in various collaborative efforts it’s obvious this is his statement of freedom. No longer is Wino the wizard of doom; with this album he rides the range of as many musical styles as he can. Don’t get me wrong the sound is pure Wino but the feel of each song is different incorporating everything from rock to doom to even some really jazzy elements. It’s also nice to see Wino getting to shine fully with his guitar playing in both the riffs and some kick ass shredding solos. This feels like a statement of release from a man long held back by the wills of other people.
The album opens with “Release Me” a throwback seventies rock jam that really showcases Wino’s ethereal voice and it’s what people expect from him. After that all bets are off and the album veers in many different directions from the high-speed title track to the jazz-tinged instrumental “The Woman In Orange Pants”. Each tune re-writes the definition of Wino and his music and gives us a multi-dimensional look at a man we thought we knew. Punctuated Equilibrium is like a weird adventure brought on by too man bongs hits and too much alcohol. As you wander these many paths with you’re never let down but you never feel quite safe. From song to song you’re brought into a new arena that forces you to confront everything from the experimental to the more straight forward but there is no telling what will happen next.
The most exciting thing about this album is that it walks these many paths without losing sight of what it actually is. Nothing sounds disjointed or out of place, Wino doesn’t force anything on us instead he just lets things flow where they need to. Too often a first solo album falls victim to an over excited musician trying to toss in everything but the kitchen sink. Punctuated Equilibrium escapes that trap due mainly to Wino seems knowing exactly where to let loose and when to show restraint. It also helps that kick ass musicians including Clutch drummer Jean Paul Gaster and bassist Jon Blank are supporting him.
Wino’s solo effort is sure to please long time fans as well as win over new ones. With this record Wino opens up new doors for himself as a musician by stretching his creative muscles just enough to show fans he can. Punctuated Equilibrium isn’t some flashy statement by a man trying to prove himself as a solo artist. Instead it’s ten varied musical challenges guided by the hand of an expert.
