Something Fierce – Don’t Be So Cruel

  • Cole Faulkner posted
  • Reviews

Something Fierce

Don't Be So Cruel - Dirtnap Records

If there’s one thing Dirtnap Records knows, it’s straight up garage punk.  Their back catalogue boasts what must be one of the biggest collections of fuzzed out punk-rock around, and they’re consistently in the business of signing standout talent.  One relative new signing for label has become Huston’s Something Fierce.  While the label reissued their previous double album, only two years later with their third release,Don’t Be So Cruel, does the band make their official Dirtnap debut, and it’s a snug fit.

Making their sound from a rough concoction of upbeat pop-punk circa The Clash meets Dirtnap labelmates The Potential JohnsHigh Tension Wires, and The Marked MenDon’t Be So Cruel packs a playful punch of stringy energy.  This is messy, sloppy garage pop played to the audio equivalent of fluorescent marching dinosaurs sporting wicked hot pants.  From opener “Don’t Be So Cruel,” every chord takes listeners by the hand and thrusts them onto an awkward pop-punk dance floor of wild body spasms and hip shaking sweeps.  Careful not to let their essential garage fuzz drown out their crisp rhythms and swollen bass, the result best manifests in the uber catchy 70’s pop-punk culmination of “Afghani Sands” and take-my-hand-and-lets-go-for-a-stroll championing dose of sugar coated cuteness of “When it Hurts.”  The three piece’s convulsive combination of shared acoustic and electric guitars as per “Ghosts Of Industry” furthers their never-ending party. Speaking of which, the band builds themselves around remarkable clarity for a creature of the garage genre, and they do so without risking any of their stylistic allegiances.

The only downside to Don’t Be So Cruel arises in their moments of intentional repetition.  While not “shallow,” the disc remains a one-sided document, voluntarily focusing on recurring tempos and mimicking past successes.  In most cases these shortcomings can be overlooked because they’re just so damn catchy, but a few cracks surface upon repeating a few less remarkable choruses (“Bad Choice” and “One The Backroads,” I’m looking at you).  While not enough to ruin the disc, the band does stick with what they know – with less pronounced elements taking the dubious role of filler.

Something Fierce delivers exactly what followers of Dirtnap Records have come to expect: body-moving good times served with a side of brain bending energy.  While the album could stand to trim the fat (I don’t think I’ve ever said that about an album totaling less than 30 minutes), in short doses Don’t be So Cruel is a sure fire success.  Fans of garage punk will have no doubt heard much of this before, but will surely latch on to and point out their veteran expertise and tight execution.