EPOXI - Demo 2023
Contributed by Greg The Builder
I am a furniture builder by trade. I mention this because the use of epoxy (with a Y) has become something of a plague to my craft. I fucking hate epoxy tables. Unoriginal, tacky bullshit.
EPOXI (with an I) on the other hand, fucking rules. EPOXI is from Bloomington, IN and the label that put out their tape says they are hardcore that sounds punk and I'm inclined to agree. This is the type of ripping and raging punk I tend to associate with bands from the often overlooked midwest. EPOXI starts this demo off with an intro track that's sole purpose is to make you move, something it does successfully. The rest of the tape takes off from there. These songs are fast, have the appropriate stops and direction changes, mosh parts, and even well placed and tasteful leads.
While all the instruments sound great, the vocals stand out to me the most. They are dynamic and urgent, sometimes speeding up to fit all the lyrics in their assigned parts. Also, I love an angry talking part like the one at the end of "Brain Lock". The tape sounds punk, and by that I mean shitty in a way that makes it sound even better than it would. I tend to prefer my own band's recordings to sound a little more polished, but that’s because I am a coward, and I am always impressed when a band can make the less refined recording part of the sound, as if it’s an uncredited member. Maybe they’re the one who will answer the band group chat in a timely manner....Anyway, this tape rules I hope there is more to come.
You can listen to EPOXI - Demo 2023 on the Upset Condition Tapes bandcamp: https://upsetconditiontapes.bandcamp.com/album/demo-2023
cybursine