I like songs that are simple and direct. (Fuck prog.) I also like songs that are a lot more odd than you first give them credit. (The Misfits sing about skulls and Martians. Western Addiction sing about a kitty cat attack, of littering fat computer monitors in favor of flat screens.) They’re also detailed and blasting, like a complicated explosive device. You don’t have to know how it’s rigged, you just know when you feel the shrapnel rip through the speakers. Western Addiction, like Paint It Black and Strike Anywhere, play precise hardcore that’s interesting without being ham-fisted, meat-headed, noodle-brained, or faint-hearted. A difficult feat well handled.
–todd (Fat)