High Tension – Death Beat

Death Beat, the debut full length from Aussie garage punks High Tension is a concoction of insanely fuzzy guitars riffs, screaming vocals and a shitload of distortion. If there was a soundtrack to a demon biker gang riding out of hell to wreak havoc on an unsuspecting world, this would be it.

Livewire frontwoman Karina Utomo’s vocal style is the audial equivalent of a scorn lover’s vitriol after discovering their partner has been unfaithful. The ferocity is electric and every lyric hits you like charleyhorse in the sternum – leaving you breathless. Musically the entire record follows a similar formula, an unrelenting pace, led by the bass of Matt Weston and Dan Mckay’s drums peppered with riff after riff of distorted guitars from Ash Pegram.

Blaze Out kicks the record off in some style, two and half minutes of frantic fuzzy guitars with Utomo screaming the lyrics like they are the last words she’ll ever say. Even on tracks like Without U.S. which starts off more subdued, you are always waiting for the moment where it all comes crashing down again (and it inevitably does).

The band are at their best when things are toned down slightly, illustrated best on Primitive, a sub 2 minute track that features a simple guitar riff and a surprisingly clear vocal, helping to showcase the lyrics in a way that other songs on the record have not been able to. ‘don’t dont, don’t need a reason to try and raise your concerns. Can’t can’t, cant find a reason, you just do what you’re told’.

I really love a lot of elements on this record, but overall it is just too similar and the more I listen, the more times I find myself reaching for the skip button. As 18^th century poet William Cowper once said ‘variety is the spice of life’ and High Tension could benefit by being mindful of this.