It's time for our 164th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and as promised, we're looking at one of local "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet
Sykotyk Rampage's three new albums from the past six months, but which one? Opting against
the new "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of..." album as I haven't reviewed its predecessor yet, I decided to go with their first of two albums released in September of last year, namely
"Scott's Pub and Crash Music", as it is generally heavier and has clearer recording quality than its follow-up
"Love Muffin". Posted to
their Bandcamp page on September 8th with a listed release date of September 1st, this album (alternately named "S.C.O.T.T. Pub & Crash Music") is 66th in Sykotyk Rampage's 68 albums-deep discography, and was recorded last year at River Front Recreation Studios and (in the case of the live recordings) their jam space The Cave.
The original crash band are represented once again by singer/drummer Paul Becker, his brother Dirk on guitar and vocals, guitarist Shane Kokis, and bassist Tony Briglio. "Scott's Pub & Crash Music" is on sale for $15 at this link, and while you can stream it there for free, consider buying it to support the band's work! This is a digital exclusive album, but if released physically, it would require two discs, running for 84 minutes across 16 tracks. Now, let's kick off this review!
First up on this album is the very topical
"COVID Spreading Party", which opens with the band jokingly declaring that they'll host the title party, and Paul even coughs before the first verse (this all comes off very tongue in cheek, if you couldn't tell). This song doesn't stray from musical form for the masters of the crash, but it's very vocal/drum driven with Dirk & Shane's guitar work very muted and going for more of a background breezy tone, if that makes sense. It's drawn out a little too much for my liking, and while it's very much on brand, the free-wheeling nature was too inconsistently applied for me. Second is
"Different Part Of The Same Thing", which is slower and woozier in nature, with Paul explaining personal regrets in spoken word and even breaking the fourth wall for some truly improvised singing about what's next in the recording (remember, Sykotyk Rampage traditionally improvise new originals on the fly when recording).
The song as a composition isn't as strong as the opener, but the more audible & involved guitar work improves things, so it's a wash for my enjoyment. Still, the entertainment level is there for fans! Third is the 99 seconds long "Fire Soul", which is basically a jam rock instrumental, spoken word banter at the end aside. It's the best song on offer so far, and the percussion is catchy in particular with good bass to match, but it does feel like an unfinished idea waiting for vocals and a longer playthrough. Next is "Get Some Whiskey In Me", a newer entry in their long line of Sykotyk Rampage's drinking songs. This song grinds along at a very grungy tempo, with Paul's singing low and bluesy to match, and while I'm not sure it hits the live crowd engagement levels of earlier such songs, it's the most consistent song with vocals yet! Tony's bass fits in very well, and the mood is well captured, so we're looking up!
The first of five live recordings is next, namely
"Gotta Get High", a live version of a song from their 2016 album
"Alarm Alarm", which I have not reviewed on the SMS yet. This is recorded similarly to the original, a steady rocker with more of a bluesy driving overtone, but if you're going to listen to both back to back, boost the volume on the live version, as Paul's vocals are very hard to hear. As a guitar showcase, this is the best so far, with a nice shredding guitar solo, but the song proper is somewhat overlong and meandering by the end. Good track overall though! Sixth is the oddly titled
"Limmed Limmeda", which runs for an album-low 62 seconds. Very punk-influenced, the track (if still bluesy by default thanks to the vocals), it's promising but sort of buried under feedback and ends before it really gets going, alas. Song #7 is
"Another Beer Love Song", which speaks for itself.
Arguably the best song so far for what I like out of Sykotyk Rampage, this fits better into their drinking song oeuvre with more of a consistent freewheeling nature, more energetic singing & drumming from Paul, and a vibe better fitting drinking beer than "Get Some Whiskey In Me" had for its title drink! It also doesn't overstay its welcome and ends near when it starts getting repetitive, so yeah, a definite early highlight! The album's first half concludes with the first of a three song run of live versions of older tracks, starting with "Lost You At A Party", previously seen under the name "Lost You In A Party" on their other 2016 album "Kock Block Rock", which I also haven't reviewed yet. Unlike "Gotta Get High", this isn't a straight re-recording, and it suffers from a sparer first section and muffled recording quality compared to the original studio version.
The song still works on a jam rock level, but it is definitely not as spontaneous and fun as the 2016 version (not helped by an abrupt ending), which fit more into the band's usual wheelhouse on Paul-sung tracks, though I'd say listen to both to compare. Next is a live redo of
"9 Days", the opening track from
their 2008 album of the same name that they previously re-recorded twice on later albums, including a "live" version on 2017's
"Live At The Paris Hilton". Of the three earlier recordings, I
did review the 2017 version, which is fitting for comparison's sake, though I am familiar with the 2008 original dating back to when I first discovered the band. "9 Days" was an early favourite song of mine in their catalog, but I did find the 2017 version to be slower and more laboured once you put the faux audience noise aside. For the 2022 version, the track is still slowed down compared to what the guys did in 2008, and the drums still come off too methodical.
The recording is clearer than the 2017 version, but the music is somewhat sparer as a result, and I feel that Dirk & Shane's guitar riffs aren't as loud in the mix as this song is used to. I think "9 Days" is best experienced in its original faster form, but you have four ways to compare! This trilogy of live songs ends with "White Girl Wasted", but if this is indeed a redo of an older song of theirs, then it was either not released on an album or it was renamed, as no titles match in their discography. As is, this song has more liveliness to it while still retaining their usual bluesy overtones. We do get some very solid guitar soloing late and strong bass from Tony, so the musical performances here are on point, but while I do prefer this to the "9 Days" redo, it's not as freewheeling as the band is at their peak. The album briefly returns to studio recordings next via "Freedom To Listen To No One", which is more of a down & dirty blues rocker.
Good showcase of bass and drums over the guitars, which feel secondary here, and Paul's lower gruff singing fits the mood that they're going for. This isn't so much the tone I prefer but Sykotyk Rampage, but it comes together as a composition better than many songs here, if not for the quieter guitar parts! The fifth and final live song is next, namely
"Fear: I Am Machine", which was previously seen as just
"Fear" on 2011's "Genius Mushrooms With Thoughts Of Intellect: Hallucinogenic Musical Brain Scans" (unreviewed by me yet). The re-do is a minute+ longer, but similar structurally, with a slow, psychedelic intro featuring trance-like background vocals that slowly builds into more of a truly sykotyk rock number. Toned down effects & distortion aside, this version differs primarily from Paul's more layered vocals.
I like this song and how it grows & evolves to a point where you forget its relatively long runtime, but I do think the original version benefited production-wise, so again, check out both to compare! The final four songs lead off with "Reality Is A Virus", which again buries Paul's vocals in the background, even with an echo on them and audible shifts in quality when his vocal track comes in, and I don't quite get why they did it like that. A mid-tempo rocker, this again plays up the rhythm section more than the guitars, with Tomy's low grinding bass giving this song a staticy overtone. Not a bad song for fans, but I'd have made Paul clearer and the guitars louder. "Sweet William's Demise" comes next with its album-long 10:55 runtime, though the first third is mostly psychedelic instrumental jamming before things slow down. The middle section is more feedback-driven with an ominous feeling and more isolated drumming..
The song builds to a heavier and more chaotic final stretch, with some nice spacey guitar work. Paul's singing is buried in the mix again, but once things truly get going in the final four minutes, the song proves itself and has everyone performing to their best, so this is another highlight if you sit it out! No word on who Sweet William is though. Second-last is the shorter but still long (9:39)
"Path Through Your Mind", which is the first and only song on "Scott's Pub & Crash Music" featuring guitarist Dirk Becker on lead vocals, with Paul also singing at points. Alas, Dirk's vocals are buried in the mix too, which isn't ideal, but not shocking on this album. The song itself leans more into psychedelia and jam rock once again, and sticks to flavours of that sounds for its entire runtime, so it's never boring as a result! I like my Sykotyk Rampage with more of a "rampage", but genre fans should dig the marathon here!
Lastly on this album is a reprise/re-recording of track #5, called "Gotta Get High: On Life Version", which is similar to the first one but slightly faster and with more distortion and fuzz, plus some spacier guitar riffing late. Honestly, if you asked me which one was the "...High On Life" version without me knowing, I'd assume it was song #5, not song #16! I think I prefer the original redo over this take for the clearer recording quality, though Paul is louder in the mix on this one, so again, listen to each to compare for yourself as to which one is better.
So what are my final thoughts on Sykotyk Rampage's 66th studio album? I have heard better from them, and no word on who Scott is, but long-time fans of theirs will want to dust off their environ-mental suits, as their tried and true formula largely pays off! If anything, this album is a showcase for Tony's bass work in particular, as he got lots of moments to shine, and he and Paul matched up well on multiple songs, especially on songs that didn't call for psychedelic guitar work and soloing. The brand new songs will mostly deliver for acclimated fans, with "Sweet William's Demise", "Another Beer Love Song", and "Reality Is A Virus" being among the highlights on this double album, but the live covers are generally not improvements on the earlier studio versions ("White Girl Wasted" aside, as I can't verify what its alleged earlier version was called). The big issues with this album for me was a lack of freewheeling hard rock jams and frequently low mixes.
If Paul was louder for the duration, let alone Dirk & Shane's guitar riffing, the album would easily have gained points for me, but of course, in a band with 68 albums now, they have more than enough songs that do fit the bill so it's not like we're all lacking. I'd also have liked to have heard Dirk on lead vocals more than once, but again, they have 67 other albums. Not my favourite SKR album, but still a fun effort, so do check it out at the above links, and I hope you liked this month's CD review! Look for our review of local pop punk project Forever Will Be's debut album "Dead & Dishonest" on the site next month, for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next, and for more news this week! Thanks everyone!
SYKOTYK RAMPAGE - Topic (http://youtube.com/channel/UCkfrXp-Rf8KSTEjTarxxiOQ)
