Night Birds: beach punk, East Coast style!

Based out of New York and North Jersey, the Night Birds are like the super team Phil Leotardo could have had if he’d joined forces with Tony Soprano instead of whacking half his crew. With the release of the band’s first studio album just a few weeks away, it’s high time to check out the foursome’s recent collection Fresh Kills Vol. 1. How about that title! Isn’t that just about the greatest album title of all-time? And guess what: it lives up to the name! The Night Birds - Brian, Mike, Joe, and Ryan- play classic hardcore punk with a surfy twist. For sure there are obvious hints of the Adolescents, Agent Orange, Circle Jerks, and other early ‘80s Cali-punk bands in their music. But this influence does not come off in a copycat or pointlessly rehashed way. The Night Birds are no one’s clone, and there’s something surprisingly contemporary about their fast-and-furious attack. Imbued with a stealthily melodic sensibility, songs like “Killer Waves”, “Midnight Movies”, “Bad Biology”, and “Thrilling Murder” absolutely shred. And the surf-rock guitars are integrated so seamlessly and awesomely that you’ll wonder why in the heck more hardcore bands don’t follow suit! Basically this is the Night Birds’ very own Black Flag First Four Years. It compiles three 7” EPs plus the band’s ultra-rare demo in its entirety. Spitting out 15 blistering tunes in well under a half-hour, this disc totally kills (sorry, pun intended). If the only possible criticism of the collection is that it leaves “room to grow”, the soon-to-be-released The Other Side of Darkness will no doubt convert the skeptics. While some may contend that nobody plays hardcore anymore “like they used to”, the Night Birds are proving them way wrong. Dig!

- L.R.

http://night-birds.bandcamp.com/album/fresh-kills-vol-1

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