Curl up and Die's second album on Revelation Records
Arriving with the many clichés that are bombing the UK shores at the moment is Revelation Record's Curl Up and Die. 'The One Above All, The End Of All That Is' is the second full-length from the Las Vegas band, and is not quite the improvement you'd have expected after their last record. Curl Up and Die are certainly not your average hardcore band, mixing some rather brutal vocals with musicianship that can only be described as technical-screamo.
The quartet's follow-up to 2002's 'Unfortunately, We're Not All Robots' brings much more enlightening titles such as 'Antidepressants Are Depressing', 'Ultra Carb Diet Carpooling Stupid Fucking Life' and 'There Ain't No Can't In American'. Unfortunately, the songs aren't as entertaining as the names suggest.
Alex Newport was the producer for Curl Up and Die's new album. He's also worked with the Mars Volta, At The Drive-In and Hyslea. But when considering what great bands Alex has worked with, it seems that his producing talents are laid to waste in this recording. Songs such as 'Zero MPH Fallover' has a rather tacky polish to it, where the distortion is pretty sickening.
There are some rather interesting pieces on Curl Up and Die's album including 'Ultra Carb Diet...', which is possibly the most energetic song on the album. Unfortunately, it lasts only one minute and 23 seconds. In most songs, it's great to hear guitarist Matt Fuchs taking full advantage of the recording studio and recording some second guitar parts.
To be quite honest, nothing particularly stands out as a killer track, or something you would find in someone's top ten greatest songs. The CD may have great artwork and some comical titles, but it isn't anything to redeem the money you paid for the CD. Maybe it's even better to get the case without the CD!