Virgins – Miscarriage

Virgins‘ debut full length, Miscarriage is the Floridian version of New York’s Sakes Alive!!. Not only is the artwork on Miscarriage incredibly similar to Act 1 (colour scheme and all) but sonically, the bands are almost exact duplicates too. Only Virgins have a slightly stronger sense of melody to their songs.

Comprised of members of New Mexican Disaster Squad (a band who I’ve heard a lot about but never anything by), Virgins are a raspy, straight forward punk rock act. Mixing equal parts eighties hardcore with the No Idea sound that Florida and The Fest has become known for, Miscarriage is the perfect example of perfectly controlled chaos. Sam Johnson’s vocals are rough and worn out, sounding the way Chuck Ragan would sound if he swallowed a frog and started smoking more. It nicely compliments the raw and live, “off the floor” sensation of the music; a sensation that fits the sound and structure of the band quite well.

Each song clocks in between two and three minutes and sees them cramming as much intensity into every sweat soaked second they have. Bloodlust runs through in less than two minutes with the ferocity and intensity of eighties hardcore legends like Black Flag and Minor Threat and Perfect World follows suit in the same fashion. Atheist in America starts off with a distinct drum/bass combination before exploding into an atheist anthem. The rhythm section paves the way on Escape from 07 which also features the best sing-along portion of the album: I’m skipping my own funeral / coffins and urns and graves/ it doesn’t feel like anyone’s safe / I’m skipping my own funeral!. The bouncy White Night gives a respite from the four-four time attack and sees Phil Longo shine on bass while WWZD is one of the band’s most reserved and diverse tracks on the album and, along with Guitarmaggedon, has the strongest guitar riffs on the album. The songs build in intensity and fury but are still wound around a hook strong enough to get the melody planted firmly in your mind.Plus, who doesn’t enjoy a good gang vocal section every once in a while? Virgins deliver those in spade.

If you’ve ever been a fan of the No Idea sound, any band that has ever played The Fest or quick, gruff, punk rock in any form, then Virgins are for you. Miscarriage won’t go down in history but will get you coming back for more with each successive listen.