V/A – Broken Bonez Volume 2

V/A – Broken Bonez Volume 2 / 2004 Broken Bonez / 24 Tracks / http://www.brokenbonezrecords.com / Reviewed 03 March 2005

One good thing about this volume as opposed to the first one is that Broken Bonez has went outside their realm of bands to pick up some up and coming acts from across the nation, and apparently finding a lot of different bands in Connecticut. I wasn’t really aware of Connecticut’s burgeoning music scene, but c’est la vie! The style of music on this compilation really varies between the bands, as Ambivalent plays a hard, snot-nosed version of crust while The Juke Joint 45’s play a noisier brand of rockabilly. In fact, the JJ45’s play a style of music that is more similar to Hotrod Boogie, who have their own two tracks on here, than anything else on this disc. While I can understand the desire for variety on this compilation, I am pretty nonplussed by this act, as everything feels like a half-baked version of Nekromantix/Tiger Army. As a testament to the differing sounds to be found on this second volume, the rockabilly of the JJ45’s is replaced just as quickly by the 80s punk-meets-Body Count style of hard-edged punk played by Maine’s own Big Meat Hammer.

Continuing the same vein of music with Blastmat, albeit with more of a metal influence (as evidenced by the blistering guitar solo found on “Freedom or War”. However, even with the strong mastering of the track, the two cuts found by Blastmat on this disc tend to morph together, a disturbing trend considering that this is only two of their tracks, instead of an EP or a full disc. Looking back to a brand of Brit Oi that is sadly not to be found in the current period, the Bloodshot Hooligans are the hump band and perform the transition into the second half of the disc perfectly. Their track “Bring Back The Spirit” has all the pieces necessary for a perfect track – a strong multi-part harmony, blazing guitar and a desire for fun! By far, Bloodshot Hooligans are a band to look for in the next few years, as their music is too energetic, too good to stay underground for long. Even Lower tries to topple the Hooligans just a few songs later, and their brand of Bad Religion-esque punk makes a strong case for being the strongest music on the disc. 2nd Class Citizen is yet another strong band that cuts their teeth on this disc, with “No Lost Cause” being a mixture of boot-boy style hardcore with pop-punk guitar lines. Another strong disc by Broken Bonez, and I know I will be looking for the next one here soon!

Top: Bloodshot Hooligan’s “Bring Back the Spirit”, Even Lower “Newerer Athem”

Rating: 7.0/10