Station Model Violence - S/T LP Review

A week ago, I knew absolutely nothing about Station Model Violence, zero, zip. However, it's bands like this that are the reason I started writing about music and built a platform on which to do it on. I got several emails, all from different people urging me to check this band out. I hate to say I love a good buzz band and it seems like Station Model Violence has folks getting the tingles on several continents. 

The band is from Sydney and has members of Total Control, DEN, and R.M.F.C. They've been called "supergroup" but that doesn't mean squat to me. You know how many "supergroups" I've heard that stink up the room something awful? Well, let's just say it's enough for me to squint my eyes and think, supergroup huh? Well, we'll see about that! I mean, I thought Total Control were kind of a "supergroup" already as well?

One of the things I found so interesting is that a lot of  the songs have such a different feel to them. The first track of the LP, a song called "Learn To Hate" is an extraordinary, melodic number. As the record progresses, so does the tempo of the songs. The song "Drip Away" is a killer punk number that scorches the earth beneath your tattered canvas sneakers. But that's not all folks! You listen to the song "Heat" and it's got an anthemic New Order feel to it. With all these different approaches to their songs though, Station Model Violence don't lose their identity or focus. All of the songs have a unique despondent feel to them and that's what gives them a sharp edge. That's what makes them feel so haunting and what threads all the songs together tightly. They give me the feeling of standing in the snow covered woods in the middle of  a winter's chill. It's difficult to pin point the band's exact modus operandi though, it's secret and they hide it well like a cold war double agent hiding stolen spy plane schematics.

This LP definitely offers a distinct  approach to contemporary post punk and new wave and sets it miles apart from so many other bands doing this sort of thing lately. This is something you should be excited for, because it doesn't come along very often. Station Model Violence help breathe new life into a genera who's corpse is already becoming bloated and diseased. I just hope this band doesn't become a one and done for these guys before they go and scatter to their other projects. The mountain avalanche has begun and there's no stopping it out now. This LP is available from Static Shock Records and Anti-Fade Records.    

Static Shock Records Bandcamp 

Anti Fade Records Bandcamp