Los Angeles – On one hand, the rise of METZ in the modern underground music scene is perplexing; the influence of electronic and pop music has slowly whittled down the number of acts that flaunt angular guitar riffs and liberal use of distortion. On the other hand, there have been few contemporary groups able to match their pairing of no-frills aggression with anti-melodic yet captivating hooks. Now that all of the large, EDM-obsessed music publications have begun singing their praises, which direction would the Toronto, ON band head with their follow up to METZ?
II answers that question right out of the gate. Opening with the loose guitar squalls heard all over their Sub Pop debut, “Acetate” establishes that METZ are not going to back their way into success by appropriating ill-fitting but trendy sonic flourishes. Guitarist/vocalist Alex Edkins, bassist Chris Slorach, and drummer Hayden Menzies spend the roughly 30 minute running length of their sophomore album pounding the audience into submission, in a manner that is nearly-identical to their debut.
Just as on their previous release, the album’s artwork paints METZ as a bleak-minded group of fellows. It features a pair of dark figures sitting slumped together on a bench overlooking a grayscale horizon, with no real clues as to what is the source of their anguish. The artwork is in fact quite a bit more sordid than the actual music on the album. Though it is an angry, angst-filled post-hardcore album, at its true core II is one of the more fun records released so far this year – one of the reasons the band is so widely celebrated outside their genre niche.
The first three tracks are a one-two-three punch of hard-hitting noise rock. In addition to “Acetate”, “The Swimmer” has been selected as a single. Coming in with an even faster pacing than the first single, “The Swimmer” thrives on dissonance and a swinging beat that is perfect for whipping up audiences and forming circle pits. The third track, “Spit You Out” is the longest track on II, dials back the speed a touch while incorporating a twisting guitar riff and anthemic chorus.
For as loose and comfortable as Edkins is with his guitar playing, the self-produced II has quite polished production values. While many noise rock bands prefer to muddle the sound with lo-fidelity techniques (perhaps in an attempt to mask songwriting deficiencies), METZ’ songs clearly ring through the speakers – it says a lot that more often than not, the lyrics behind Edkins’ howling vocals can be deciphered. The bass is quite heavy in the mix; fairly standard operating procedure for sludgy punk of this variety.
The clear criticism of II is the same as the common complaint leveled at their debut; there is a decided lack of song diversity. The band clearly has a favored formula, and they are not afraid to dip into the well over and over again. That being said, when the songwriting recipe yields results as satisfying as the tracks heard on both albums, it is hard to blame the band.
METZ will be on the road all summer long, with appearances throughout North America and Europe. Check out their website to find out exact dates and to purchase tickets.
Matt Matasci
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