By It’s our Bandcamp Pick of the Week, featuring Motorbike’s full throttle self-titled punk debut, out now via Feel It Records!
Motorbike – S/T
Genre: Punk, Post-Punk
Favorite Tracks: “Throttle,” “Spring Grove”
There’s two things essential to all good punk (okay, three, but I won’t count studded belts). One is bringing a robust intensity to everything. The other is having a desire to escape—shitty governments, awful relationships, toxic social structures, etc. In the case of Cincinnati’s Motorbike, they’ve taken this essential approach to its logical progression. Their self-titled debut album is a nine-track record that’s not only big and brash, but its lust for speedy escapism reaches some intriguing heights.
It’s not a concept album—but it’s similarly impassioned by and obsessed with the imagery of racing and driving away and finding truths by leading a fast life. (Also, the idea of getting away in a car is more Midwestern than all of their weird salads.) Still, that kinetic, pedal-to-the-metal approach has its ups and downs. Sure, there’s “Throttle” (a pure blitzkrieg where the racing motif is applied for maximum impact) and “Off I Sped”–-a 90-second runtime also means peak kinetic energy and thematic viability. But then there’s “Motorbike” and “True Method,” where the fast-paced gimmick falls a tad flat, and where a truly Midwesternized mix of gimmickry/hokiness and riotous rock emerges that’s decidedly fun if not a tad one-dimensional. Heck, the brash and blunted “Pressure Cooker” stands out only because it’s (seemingly) not racing-related.
Luckily, the band have a secret weapon a la Racer X: singer Jamie Morrison, whose Welsh accent and general UK-informed sensibilities do wonders for both the record and band. In “Life is Hell,” there exists an understated sheen of irony and humor that makes a nihilistic garage jam ring louder. Or “Spring Grove,” which feels like the most “British” track on this whole record and extends its magic into daring new ideas and sonic territories with a comparable rush of joy. “Potential to Ride” is a close second for UK tendencies; it rides that line (sorry) decently enough between heavy-handed proto-punk and more obscure and hazy energies pulled from UK post-punk. But even without Morrison’s overt influence, album closer “The Language” soars as this extended jam where the band crash together in a symphony of carnal chaos and profound emotional release. It’s a minor aspect, but Morrison generates more horsepower and colors certain decisions while adding bits and textures to help turn sweet junkers into songs more akin to pulverizing monster trucks.
Sure, the whole racing/driving shtick can feel a little overwrought and plotted—but it is, often quite narrowly, both a boon and a bane. It allows them to maintain a pace that plays up their strengths (robust passion and technical prowess) and confront listeners head on. The fact that some tracks land like a solid right hook versus the heft of a Mack truck elsewhere is proof that, with just a tad more time behind the wheel, the band could more easily control the pace and approach like NASCAR pros. In the meantime, this record will get ya where ya need to go. Listen to it now over on Bandcamp.
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