Never Say Never
Hymns of Hate
Ballz Out Records
Street: 12.14.10
Never Say Never = The Unseen + Broken Bones + Municipal Waste
Salt Lake City’s bullet-belted loudmouths claim to be the dirty rotten bastard offspring of spike-studded punk rock and rollicking thrash metal. The effort is earnest (and generally enjoyable) and their cheeky disdain of all things “PC” elicits a laugh or two (who isn’t up for the occasional dick joke?), but they don’t always straddle the line seamlessly. When they decide to play breakneck thrash (“Thrash of the Titans” and “Iron Soul”) they’re tight, explosive and undeniable. It’s when they reign it all in for a mid-tempo street punk jam that the hybrid sounds a tad forced and disjointed (“Ashes of Society” with its dopey lyrics and Star Wars sample, though endearing, sounds a bit out of place). Still, they’ve got the chops when they choose to use ‘em, and like seasoned shoplifters, they’re at their best when they’re playing at blitzkrieg speed.