Short Walk- Don't Be One

Who knew good 'ol Bill Shakesbeer was actually referring to power violence when he famously said "brevity is the soul of wit?" Fortunately for us, Short Walk sticks to Bill's words by keeping things short and sweet with their new tape Don't be One which is twelve tracks of blistering hardcore that's just under seven minutes.

Now, I'm not saying Short Walk are ready to sew leather elbow patches on their tweed jackets, I'm just saying they're heading in the right direction. While each song may only be around thirty seconds long, they cover a myriad of tempos and riffs which are mostly smushed in between balls to the wall blast beats. Take "Dude Machine" which starts with the music equivalent of "keep away" and then goes right into a flurry of blast beats and shouts.

The band seamlessly manipulates rhythm and momentum to create energetic and attention grabbing songs. In a song I can only assume to pertain to everyone's least favorite footwear (up there with Crocs) "Uggs (Kill Yourself" shines through as the highlight of the tape with it's continually shifting rhythms and sheer moshability.  The band kinda reminds me a bit of Ceremony if they were a little more interesting and higher octane and Insect Warfare's deceptive ability to play something familiar sounding but better (well in their case, perfect). The songs seem to contain the sense of humor and criticism we usually see in hardcore (taking shots as clothing styles and their scenes, songs about moshing, and some fuck yous) which isn't a bad thing at all, just more to solidify the band as being completely amenable to any fans of the style.




Perfect music for people with attention issues, Short Walk's fluidity and excellent execution doesn't break any new ground but simply rocks. And while six minutes might be too little to judge a band on, Short Walk clearly demonstrate a style of hardcore that is best suited for the pit and begs to be expanded upon.

I like this band, and I like a lot of other good things, so you should do what I say and listen to their tracks via their facecamp, or bookband, or whatever.

If you need further proof of my good taste here's a quick list of things I like that everyone should agree is good.

The Simpsons
Maker's Mark
Friday the 13th
Reign in Blood
Louis C.K.
Ice cream sandwiches

Enough?

Check the band out, WALK don't run for this one, yuck yuck yuck yuck (I don't even know how that makes sense, I just needed to put one pun in about their name to make me feel good about myself).