Intro5pect

Back in 1999, the Faint had recently begun their transformation from a Braid-influenced post-punk band to an electronic-leaning dance-punk group, !!! had been tinkering around and releasing singles, and Big Audio Dynamite’s foray into techno-punk was over a decade in the past. But no act had successfully blended the tenacity and politics of punk rock with the programmed beats and synthesizers of electronic RPM until Intro5pect debuted on the fledgling GC Records with their Education 7-inch. After high-profile tours with the likes of Dead to Me, Citizen Fish and Leftover Crack, a full-length on A-F Records and an EP on Blacknoise with Stza Crack, Intro5pect returns to where it all started with Record Profits.

The seven-song EP gets going with what is likely to be one of the catchiest non-Orgcore songs of the year, “Work to Live.” The choppy `77 guitars are layered alongside 8-bit synths, blipping and bleeping over a driving digital rhythm. “Fuck Your Flag” smacks of a poppier Anti-Flag with male and female vocals, much like “Sound Is the Enemy,” a riff-heavy choral manifesto propelled forward by a breakneck beat, save for the chunky call-and-response breakdown that takes up the middle.

The band really hits their stride by the time “Collateral” comes around, thick with a rolling bassline and flittering percussion and made memorable with a booming chorus and sound bite collage that seems to take aim at every president since the invention of the microphone. “The System” is fairly baldfaced politically, with a chorus of “Fuck the system / Fuck the system / Fuck the system / Tear it down” but blends in some nice synth work, while “Turnaround” is the disc’s most straightforward punk number. Keyboardist Sara Zaidi takes charge of “Plastic World,” both vocally and instrumentally, as the Metroid-styled keys rise to dominance when she’s not singing about feeling constrained by the status quo -- er rather, not caring about feeling constrained by the status quo.

Intro5pect are in fine form on Record Profits, having finally figured out how to diversify their sound while still creating a patently individual style. The seven songs of Record Profits hurl forth with dizzying ferocity and don’t let up while showcasing the seamless blend of electronic dance music and digital punk that has become Intro5pect’s calling card.
- Punknews.org

A wonderful punk as fuck mix of samples, break-beats, guitars and synth. Anti-flag meets Atom and His Package, while colliding with Dead Prez at a Crass show. Intelligent, aggro, bi-energy, political music. And it works really well. Think early Depeche Mode with a serious anarchist bent, and guitars to match. Fucking Right on. (RK) - AMP Magazine

Before going any further, it needs to be said that SoCal's Intro5pect sound exactly like the middle ground between political punkers Anti-Flag and the rapid-fire bpm dynamics of Atari Teenage Riot. If that sounds appealing, read on. Intro5pect's new EP, Record Profits, features seven songs of melodic punk sing-alongs set to keyboard trickery and one badass drum machine. Revolutionary ditties like "Fuck Your Flag" and "Sound Is The Enemy" could have been taken straight from an Anti-Flag album if it weren't for the Nintendo-on-the-fritz backbeats. The interchange of male/female vocals really does these songs justice, particularly those led by keyboardist Sara Zaidi's snotty snarl and melody-drenched lilt. Album closer "Plastic World" is one of the few times we can use the term "dance-punk" without getting that icky feeling afterwards. (GC) Jason Schreurs
- Alternative Press

This was a huge surprise. It's a bold move that could have failed miserably. Combine elements of techno dance music, bend it with a strong leftist slant, add punk rock guitars and a vocalist and see what flies. It may sound awful and I was extremely apprehensive, but fuck, I like it. A lot. The music, sans the words, reminds me a lot of a remix of the Revolting Cocks, Atari Teenage Riot, and the happy-fastness of early Bis. I know fuckall about electronic music (how it's made, what's been done, whatnot), and I'm hoping that if i go see these fine folks that they are not standing around humping what looks like washing machines (I've seen one electronica band in my life, for half a song. Yuck.). What's thankfully missing is the mind numbing repetition. It's exciting stuff. Several things hinge my support. First, it's fucking catchy and it rocks. Second, as where Atari Teenage Riot failed - calling for a revolution while on a subsidiary of a major and selling over priced t-shirts - I get the feeling that Intro5pect are down for the cause. Thrid, anyone who can rhyme and blast through the lines: "Like a rock through a mosque in Jerusalem/ a bullet through the head in Vietnam/ a cannon through the wall at Tiananmen" is all right by me. Fourth, I've never heard music quite like this before and it's appealing to hear punk music this far in the game clear another corner (much like how Against Me! is fusing country/folk into punk without diluting either.) Perhaps I've got blinders on and there's a whole slew of electronic-based legions of crusties out there I've been overlooking, but I doubt it. If you're not too far dug in your particular punk trench, willing to take on some new fire, this comes highly recommended. The only thing I don't get is the "5" in the middle of their name. - Todd - Razorcake