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Grimy, depressive post-punk from the City of Flowers and Sunshine executed by the masterminds behind SMUT and SMIRK. "Killing Life" resonates with a monotonous yet melodic cruz through the bleak underworld of human nature and party fallout. A mouthful of bad LSD and worm dirt. Perfect for pandemic summer.
An edition of 200 pro-dubbed smoky gray cassettes housed in a clear/white Norelco box with hand cut 67 lb. cardstock J-cards. Recorded and mixed by Colin Knight. Mastered by Andrew Oswald. Art by Alexander Gonzalez.
Our take: Iron Lung Records brings us the debut tape from this death rock / goth / post-punk band from sunny Los Angeles. Cemento’s sound ranges from brooding death rock that reminds me of their fellow Angelinos Christian Death (particularly on the opening track, “Cash Grab”), to punkier, more melodic post-punk a la the Chameleons. Cemento relies on familiar tropes of this style, including chorus effects on the guitars and double hi-hat patterns on the drums, but there’s solid songwriting at the core and a knack for earworm guitar hooks. And with eight tracks clocking in at 23 minutes, Killing Life feels more like a cassette album than a demo tape or teaser.
An edition of 200 pro-dubbed smoky gray cassettes housed in a clear/white Norelco box with hand cut 67 lb. cardstock J-cards. Recorded and mixed by Colin Knight. Mastered by Andrew Oswald. Art by Alexander Gonzalez.
Our take: Iron Lung Records brings us the debut tape from this death rock / goth / post-punk band from sunny Los Angeles. Cemento’s sound ranges from brooding death rock that reminds me of their fellow Angelinos Christian Death (particularly on the opening track, “Cash Grab”), to punkier, more melodic post-punk a la the Chameleons. Cemento relies on familiar tropes of this style, including chorus effects on the guitars and double hi-hat patterns on the drums, but there’s solid songwriting at the core and a knack for earworm guitar hooks. And with eight tracks clocking in at 23 minutes, Killing Life feels more like a cassette album than a demo tape or teaser.