This is the band Raw Nerves from Portland. I caught these guys in Birmingham a couple of weeks ago and thoroughly enjoyed their set. I picked up this 7” because it was their most recent release and I was a little let down. The four songs here aren’t bad if you’re into the bands on the Rodent Popsicle roster (I honestly hear a lot of early A Global Threat in their sound, but I’m not sure how they’d feel about me saying that), but, ultimately, the songs just don’t stick with me. They do a decent Youth Of Today cover (though I’m not really a fan of YOT) and the other songs are okay (though they all feel a little too long), but I wish they’d make a little more use of the fact that they have two guitars and a singer who can actually sort of sing.
–Ian Wise (Inkblot, inkblotrecords.net)