Transistor Transistor – Erase All Name And Likeness / 2004 Level Plane / 11 Tracks / / http://www.level-plane.com / Reviewed 08 March 2005
Mixing equal parts emo and noise, Transistor Transistor is what Refused should have sounded like on “The Shape of Punk To Come”, with furious guitars and equally angry vocals struggling for dominance in a landscape free from fuzzy debris. In tracks like “Black Cat”, the overall sound of Transistor Transistor is more of a communal vibe than Brad, Nat, Fred, and James – the guitars on the track knock the heights out while the drums create a continual presence at the depths. “power Chord Academy” is a track that surprisingly fits with its title; the iconic guitar lines are thick and ropey while the arrangements are staggered in an increasing way, drawing more into each subsequent riff. Moving to immense distortion for “Songsandstitle”, the overall feel of this track is much more Counting Crows than Ed Gein; the guitar riffs feel pre-meditated and plodding. Moving back to their earlier position of balls-out, machine-gun tempoed rock for “Curse You All Kids”, Transistor Transistor use screeching guitars to diametrically oppose the chunky bass on the track, providing a number of levels in which people can enjoy the track.
Overall, the chances are with this album Transistor Transistor will not get the prestige that they deserve. However, this album should not be overlooked, as tracks like “Transistor Transistor vs Everyoen” are some of the most intense three minute tracks that have ever been cut out. When a band comes through with such fury and does not allow themselves to cut corners in the least, magic will be created. The magic is this swirling eddy of destruction and an under girding sense of military discipline, and will do Transistor Transistor much in garnering an even-larger fanbase. The disc does not sputter out and die with the last few tracks; in fact, “Empathy”, the antepenultimate track is revolutionary in its disaffected set of vocals weathering the storm created by the guitars and drums on the track.
Transistor Transistor is everything to everyone, and not in the bad sense that the old Everclear track would have you think. Just like a grad school text, Transistor Transistor is extraordinarily dense, but unlike those dusty books, this is a positive thing. This means that ten people could listen to the same section of a song, and one could pull out the punk guitars, the psychedelic drums, the rising action of the bridge, or a litany of other bells and whistles.
Top Tracks: Straight To Hell, Songsanstitle
Rating: 6.9/10