Struction "Struction"

New York trio Struction’s latest EP is a textbook case of what happens when talented musicians try to do too much at once. Before the first 10 seconds of opener “Surgical Instrument” pass, the band’s weaknesses are made abundantly clear. The drummer tries to play more fills than the tempo will allow. Although the band foregoes the use of bass guitar, the axe work of David Podrid and Jaime Meira Sonin is too busy to compensate for the lack of low end. It doesn’t help matters that Podrid and Sonin are often playing in different keys simultaneously, which makes everything sound even more chaotic without a bass line to tie everything together. The duo’s vocals are just as cluttered as their guitar playing; they often shout different lyrics simultaneously, an effect that renders both voices unintelligible. The cumulative effect of all of this disorganization sounds a bit like Heros Severum sped up to 45 RPM with the treble turned up…which isn’t a good thing.

What makes this even more frustrating is that when even one of
Struction’s members decides to calm down a bit, the resulting tightness ironically produces greater intensity. In other words, Struction are more fearsome when they’re NOT trying to fire on all cylinders. The jumbled verses on many of this EP’s songs give way to strong choruses that soar because of Sonin’s crisp alto. When she’s not mumbling, screaming or rapping, she actually sounds great! The only song that works from beginning to end is “Untitled,” and that’s mainly because instead of shouting and strumming recklessly, Podrid and Sonin actually take turns on the microphone and engage in some nice stop/start guitar interplay.

Unfortunately, by the time got to the sloppy blast beats and gratuitous screeching of “Dave’s Other Crazy,” I got frustrated with all the wasted potential. I wanted to shake some sense into the band and shout, “GET A BASSIST ALREADY AND STOP SHOUTING ALL THE DAMN TIME!!!” Maybe Struction should do some yoga or pilates before their next trip to the studio to release all of their built-up anger, because said anger is wreaking utter havoc on their music.

--Sean Padilla

Artist Website: http://www.structionnoise.com/
Label Website: http://www.nfilabel.com/