Unsane are easily one of the best bands to come out of New York’s noise rock scene in the late 80s early 90s and have continued to forge ahead despite the setbacks they have experienced along the way.
Relapse Records 2005 release Blood Run was a return to the brutal drop D riffs the band had become known for. Slaking a thirst their fans had been dying for since the Amphetamine Reptile days. Ipecac’s 2007 release Visqueen finds the band taking a step in the direction of melody rather than the discordant assault of previous releases.
“Only Pain” has a melancholy, doom riding thrust that invokes sadness while listening. Taking a queue from Helmet’s knack for melody, the songs dreary landscape is driving and gut wrenching as the listener takes a ride down a bleak desert highway in the darkest night counting yellow highway lines, eyes blurred from tears and too much liquor. The journey stays the same throughout and rarely lets the listener take a breather.
Visqueen is an excellent execution of an album for a band that has relied heavily on intellectual brawn rather than melodious command. Continuing in the direction the band has chosen for this album may finally garner accolades from a mainstream community that the band has been previously ignored by, while other bands such as Helmet and Chevelle have reaped the benefit of a music genre Unsane undoubtedly helped found.
Relapse Records 2005 release Blood Run was a return to the brutal drop D riffs the band had become known for. Slaking a thirst their fans had been dying for since the Amphetamine Reptile days. Ipecac’s 2007 release Visqueen finds the band taking a step in the direction of melody rather than the discordant assault of previous releases.
