FUCKED UP
baiting the public 7"
(DY43)

Yet another smashing ep by Toronto's finest. These tracks continue right where their highly acclaimed 'POLICE' ep left off.

MP3

"baiting the public"

AVAILABILITY: SOLD OUT

PRESSING INFO

1000 black - 500 of each cover

REVIEWS

Razorcake #17
I've scratched my head for the better part of eighteen years and continue to do so. What makes some hardcore so patently ho-hum while other bands sound like they're, metaphorically sticking a firecracker up a cat's ass so they explosion happens right in front of you, claws are flying every which way, and it's sticky? I still don't know, but Toronto's Fucked UP kick all of the excitement knobs as far as they'll go. The songs aren't full-out speed blasts and the mid-tempos suit them well. The guitar work pings off itself and the drumming sounds happy among the chaos, so it's not only trammeling and feisty, but the songs are injected with a new sense of urgency. By doing all that, not only can I tolerate the freakout sax and clarinet outerlude on 'the Public', it actually sounds good and well placed. If I were in a masochistic mood, I'd beat my finger with a hammer so I could give it a bigger thumbs up.

Short, Fast, and Loud
People just don't seem to get this band at all. In Fucked Up reviews you consistently see two things mentioned, "it sounds like Negative Approach" and "this record's too short." OK, first, I don't hear any Negative Approach whatsoever in this band and secondly, that the records are so short is really no big deal; I'm sure most of you regularly stop listening to 7's you like half way through side a because after the initial few minutes, not a whole lot happens. Fucked Up are probably one of the most song orientated bands (i.e., they aren't a collection of riffs to get from a to b) the hardcore scene has had for a long time and I can happily restart their records several times in a row, they're that good, they write songs that well.

They definitely seem to be moving away from the faster numbers they did in their early days and seem to have started settling down into a more mid-tempo, anthemic writing mind set, though Municipal Pricks, on the B Side of Police, still manages to hurry by at a good rate.

These songs are deceptively simple, and I mean REALLY simple, so simple you barely even notice it. It's pretty much verse/ chorus/ bridge/ verse/ chorus and the band are more than happy to play single note bridges and two note main riffs, yet they do it incredibly well. They don't shy away from almost blatantly recycling their own riffs either (kinda like The Ramones of hardcore). What stops the simplicity of the music becoming quickly boring is three things.

First, they have a really weird strumming style and when playing a one chord bridge can make it sound much more involved than it really is, second, they have these very simple melodic flourishes, not quite solos, that seemingly come and go at random and really pad out the songs. These flourishes really bring to mind a lot of KBD and New Wave bands, but played within a distinctly hardcore framework. I think it gives them an edge that makes them sound partially like The Nerves, especially on Baiting The Public, played by hardcore kids (before that song turns into an almost Krautrock jam) with an occasional simplified early Zounds (first 7") thing going on.

The third, and the main thing that keeps that to mind keeps them grounded in hardcore, is the vocals. Jerry A move over. Without any hyperbole, I truly believe Fucked Up have one of the greatest vocalists in hardcore today, strong sounding, great delivery and a fantastic presence, this guy really makes the songs.

Fucked Up are going to write an amazing album when they eventually get round to it and stop releasing a new 7" each month. Definitely a band that will be remembered and listened to in the future, watch in five years time as everyone "rediscovers" them.