Expired Logic

Expired Logic -- "Dissolution Consensus"

This first in a series of four 7-inchers is a full-on ripper from this Seattle punk unit. If you like in-your-face tunes done Poison Idea-style, then step right up.

The musicianship is solid and the vocals snarl and yank you into Expired Logic's world.

They kick things off with the sci-fi, theremin-laced "Wrath of Mothra," which grabbed the attention of a promoter in Tokyo and landed the band a Japanese tour this December. While watching those monster movies as a kid on my black-and-white TV, I always wished for a soundtrack -- and this song nails it.

The last three songs touch on addiction, corporation greed and dealing with life's twists and turns while the guitarist lays down a variety of styles from crunchy punk to metalish squeals to some jazzy bits.

Singer Timm Shere, 46, notes about forming the band: "This was started as a recovery for me. I suffered a stroke six months before."

He added that the remaining limited-edition records will be released every 3-4 months, and together the covers will reveal the full artwork like a puzzle.

Bring it on, guys.

https://expiredlogic.bandcamp.com/ - Andy Nystrom

Expired Logic - Dissolution Consensus #1












Self-described sci-fi punk band, Expired Logic, are a delightful four piece from Seattle. This June they released the first 7" in a series they call "Dissolution Consensus." They plan to drop another one every four months. After a year of frantically collecting these artifacts, fans will be able to lay them out in a square and view one unified image formed by the individual covers. That concept alone is enough reason to buy this thing.

It doesn't hurt that it starts out with an awesome punk song that includes some serious late 50's-science-fiction-movie style theremin, over surf influenced guitar and drums, only to serve as a vehicle for one simple line: "The Wrath of Mothra!" It's pretty fucking epic. The track gets you pumped, and sets the scene for a post apocalyptic world where the monsters that live in our grandparents' video tapes might just be lurking around the corner, ready to ravage our cities.

This leads into a song that doesn't require any suspension of your disbelief to administer it's terror. "Spun" is about the very real problem of drug addiction. Lines like, "I find you lying there/ and I don't understand/ why you get so spun./ You look so peaceful/ as I calmly shake you/ you've got me worried my love," really break your heart if you take to time to listen to them. Listening may be hard to do, as this song powers forth with the ferocity of something off Poison Idea's "Feel the Darkness," but with better production value. If you're a fan of hardcore punk, the steady chugging 4/4 will be at home on your turn table, and the squealing guitar ascensions in between lines will work up all of your neo-thrash buddies.

"Rotting Inside" starts off in much the same way Black Flag's "Six Pack" begins, but once the lead singer switches from repeating "I'm plotting inside," to explaining why he is doing so, you hear the faint repetition continuing in the background and realize that this is no regurgitated punk retread. As the tension builds it eventually explodes into a street-punk anthem that would be at home alongside some of the Exploited's more produced stuff. "It's a nations sickness/ of corporation and greed/ created the code/ to plant the seeds," is just one of the lines that caught my attention in this tirade against GMOs. The one thing that really made this song stand out for me was the very uncomfortable and jarring stop at the end. I don't want to ruin it, but let's just say if you like your musics counts to be on, this will be very hard on you. Even if you aren't listening closely, you'll know something is off. It smacks you in the head and brings your attention back, which is an important service to provide on a punk record. Everyone knows punks have ADH...

The penultimate track, "Take Me!!!" starts with a watery guitar riff reminiscent of what made Seattle famous, until the odd note at the end of the lick wipes that notion away. Which is nice, because it breaks into thundering drums and and big guitar slides that again hearken back to Black Flag and Poison Idea. In a way, it's kinda noisy like something Steve Albini might have produced, but a lot cleaner. Lyrically, it seems to be about a discontentment with life and feelings of stagnation or entrapment. I assume based on their love of sci-fi that the line, "Just take me!" is directed at some alien being. Then again, it ends with "as I am," which may mean the song is simply about feeling like you're waiting for the world to come around. To finally let you in. Either way, the music and vocals construct a kind of frenzy in the lonesome and frustrated sound, that embodies the feelings portrayed by the lyrics.

In all, I'd say this is a very solid 7" and a must have for any punk enthusiast. The one draw back is that even with "Wrath of Mothra" having the theremin, and "Take Me!!!" showing no love for typical song-structure, it's still a punk album, and punk get's tired. I personally had hopes that it might be a little more science-fiction-esque. Something like a much less assaulting version of the Locust, maybe. Nevertheless, I wasn't let down (I came in knowing it was a punk record) and I find myself itching for the next one. - Paul Wildey