It may just be time to sound like a broken record. At the turn of the year, This Drama impressed with debut release ‘San Diego XIII’ (picking-up a global release through Deep Elm Records following a local Spanish release in 2008). Punktastic forebode of a positive future. That future appears to be right now, coming in the form of ‘Tarantula Mata’, a new seven tracker that picks up just where the band left off.
Everything that made ‘San Diego XIII’ enjoyable is back on show here. The dirty, punk ‘n’ roll sounds still oozes from every pore whilst the gnarly, middle-finger engaged attitude seethes with every note and spat lyric. Fast and unrelenting is the name of the game and this is a game that’s being well and truly thrashed out.
‘Tarantula Mata’ sees Joby J. Ford, guitarist with The Bronx, on producing duties so it’d be a little too predictable to liken the band to the L.A. outfit, but that’s what we said last time and that’s what we’ll unashamedly pronounce this time. For a band that hails from the Tenerife (that’s still an amusing statement to be making on Punktastic), there’s a whole heap of L.A. gutter sounds going on. It feels dirty and that’s more than part of the pleasure. Just check out closer “Hollywood Quema” for some seriously incendiary and grubby vocals, or “Five Years” for some Rocket From The Crypt style riffs (and yes, that was said last time around).
Perhaps that is one of the problems though. ‘Tarantula Mata’ doesn’t sneak up on you like its predecessor. The feeling of similarity takes a little bit off the edge out of it, although there is a definitely ‘smoother’ feel to the record that is down in part to the production values. This is the sound of a band that has matured since last recordings and is improving, but hasn’t yet taken that next step to blow the doors off.
At seven tracks, clocking in at just over 20 minutes, there’s also a sense that you’re being flirted with but you’re still going home alone. A few more tracks would have beefed the ‘album’ out and may well have provided a chance for the band to flex its musical muscle. Still, it’s better to deliver seven strong tracks (there isn’t a dud on here) than chuck in some filler.
Any band will tell you it’s tough to follow-up your debut release, but This Drama has made a decent stab at it. ‘Tarantula Mata’ rides the crest of the previous effort without managing to make a full-on breakaway. It’s as good, perhaps better, but not outstandingly so. Hence the same score. Similarity resides. That’s not a bad thing though.
Alex