Album Reviews

What do you get when former members of bands like From Ashes Rise, Bothers, Deathreat and Young Livers decide to channel their inner Leatherface, Jawbreaker, Dinosaur Jr, Hüsker Dü and Seaweed among others? Well, you end up with all kinds of awesomeness.

Portland, OR’s Amusement recently released ‘First 3 EP’s Collection,’ via Shield Recordings and Brassneck Records, which combines… you’ll never guess this… the band’s first 3 EP’s along with a cover of Dinosaur Jr’s ‘Budge’ as a smart, little bonus.

In spite of having been released as 3 separate releases, the songs actually add up to a cohesive album that pounds away in the best of ways, while also making sure they never lose sight of melodies. Opener ‘Walk Out To Sink’ eases you into the band’s carefully shaped world, ending up somewhere between Seaweed and Goo Goo Dolls. Older Goo Goo Dolls, that is. I’m pretty sure that whoever Iris is, she probably wouldn’t dig Amusement. ‘You Will Never Hear This’ is another slice of greatness, managing to hit hard, while also being wildly catchy. ‘Dead On The Inside’ is relentless, driven forward by some powerful drumming. Which can be said for the angsty and urgent ‘Standing On Top Of The A Bomb’ as well.

There basically isn’t a single dud to be found on here, which makes me look forward to the full-length Amusement already said will be arriving somewhere next year.