V/A – Smash The States: Redefining Punk Rock from the South / 2005 Suicide Watch / 35 Tracks / http://www.suicidewatchrecords.com / Reviewed 26 May 2005

This is a shit-ton of punk acts from “the South”. Now, this is only the “Old South”, but the music contained on this disc is as fresh as the morning comes. While the quality of recording and sound varies much between bands, the average track on “Smash The States” is near the level of those larger compilations (Punk-O-Rama, Fat Music). The inclusion of major acts like New Mexican Disaster Squad and Carrie Nations is a little confusing, and the fact that these tracks are nowhere near the best on the disc is even more so. Every song on the disc spins for about two minutes and promptly cuts out, but there are a number of highlights to “Smash The States”.

The first comes during OBGYN’s “No Motivation”, which has an Avengers/Vice Squad feel to it that drills itself into one’s head. The bass line that opens “No Motivation” provides a rhythm that allows the lead singer to conduct eir voice with a bizarre harmony that is compelling. I Live With Zombies continue their domination of whatever media they are on with “Keep Your Head Up”, a track that has much more of a “I Won’t Forget” sound than the rest of the sound on their EP. Flamin’ Anus mixes equal parts Ten Foot Pole and Oz Factor-era Unwritten Law to come up with a blistering, high-energy punk song that caters equally well to those in the pit as those eleven year olds buying their first punk CD. The intricate bass line that takes such a major role during the New School Dropouts’ “City of The Ostrich” is a perfect foil for the seventies rock/Dexter Holland-esque style of vocals laid on the track.

The thirty-five cuts on the disc really make it hard to accurately get a good feel of even a fraction of the bands on the disc, but bands like Dirty South Revolutionaries really stand out as a high point during the disc. The innovative thing about the band is their mix of metal and the oi sound, something that shines through even though the recording is more than a little bit hairy. Finally, the classic punk sound of Hungry Ghost really improves on the style of newer acts like Lars Fredericksen and the Bastards to make something that is easy to sing along with while still being tremendously catchy music-wise. Suicide Watch has a hit with this album, and gets together a number of bands that may never get the press they deserve besides from this disc.

Top Tracks: Hungry Ghost / Bill of Rights, OBGYN / No Motivation

Rating: 7.6/10