Vonnegut – A Parliament Of Rooks

At first glance, Vonnegut’s debut EP, A Parliament Of Rooks, might seem an unlikely candidate for praise.  The simple and oddly pixilated front and back cover, the short track listing, and obvious horror overtones don’t come across as particularly unique.  Or at least those were my initial impressions.  Consequently, when I fired up the humble six-track disc the strength of what followed placed me in a state of sustained fixation.  More shocking yet, this feeling lasts for the entirety of the disc, with every track feeling just as fresh as the first.

Horror artists get a lot of flak for playing it safe, and Vonnegut seems to be on a mission to extinguish those preconceptions.  So much in fact that A Parliament Of Rooks is an unpredictable amalgamation of horror, borderline blistering melodic punk, and screeching hardcore.

With so much going on it’s difficult to pinpoint their key to success, but a large part of Vonnegut’s draw rests in their vocal formula.  But really, there’s nothing formulaic about it.  While lead vocal duties lie with front man “Hero,” guitarists Adam and Jarred jump in regularly, with each offering their own stylistic adaptation.  Sometimes they trade on and off, others they come together for some gang vocals, and sometimes they layer and harmonize with one another.  That might sound like business as usual in the realm of melodic punk, but when you consider that Hero sounds like Left Over Crack’s Stza with blown vocal chords crossed with a young Davey Havok, and that Adam and Jared offer New York style hardcore and a Danzig-like croon, they realize a lot of potential.  While every track could be plucked as an easy example, check out “Vengence” for the most developed sound.

But vocals aren’t everything, and while Vonnegut could have road on their vocal merit, they have an equally ambitious instrumental agenda.  And with two prime guitarists, tempos twist and riffs rage.  Their sound rests between two extremes exemplified in “Vengence” and “Packing Town.”  The former feels like a messy, violent explosion, and the later a midnight walk down a dark, forsaken path.  But even that doesn’t do justice, as a closer look finds “Vengence” concluding with what might be termed the punk equivalent to a crawling breakdown.  Whatever the case, there’s no denying that all six tracks come packed with surprises.

At the risk of bloating this review further, I should also point out that the album’s “horror” content distances itself from fiction, instead using horror as a basis for exploring political themes of complacency and ignorance.  And why shouldn’t it? – the disconnect between populous and elected representatives in global democracies is pretty horrific if you do your homework.  The EP might barely push twelve minutes, but rest assured you’ll be contemplating their message for hours to come.

In short, A Parliament Of Rooks isn’t your graveyard variety horror release.  Vonnegut does and says more in six tracks than most horror acts do in their entire career.  And as pretentious as that sounds, it’s true.  Now go out and pick this up so Vonnegut gets the message and starts working on a follow-up.