STATION MODEL VIOLENCE - S/T
Contributed by splendid ass
Wiry post-punk propelled by lashings of well-adjusted psychedelia… hmmm, characteristics of a record which usually have me searching for load bearing beams. STATION MODEL VIOLENCE's debut is ‘the underground’ for men over the age of 35 and with full-time jobs. It is the HOODOO GURUS for the Gen Z/Millenial threshold, a record that will offend no one and delight those who comment on YouTube videos. This S/T fiddles with a 12-string, picks one or two good ideas and charts a trajectory into the cloudless horizon. The palette draws obvious comparisons to ya JOY DIVISION’s and BRAIN ENO’s and boy oh boy do I love hearing music in 2026 that evokes JOY DIVISION and BRIAN ENO.
There is a familiarity to the whole thing, driven no doubt by the immense pervasiveness of post-punk. The record attempts a sort-of intellectual pint-based ambivalence, with Dan switching between lines like “learn to hate in the light of day” and “you can hear them saying, ‘hey I got the world behind me, get out my way’”. Platitudes thick, the optimism makes you squint, and the on-stage vibes are questionable yet the saxophone does indeed add lots to the mix. Thank fuck for that saxophone.
My compulsion to critique comes from just how seriously this record takes itself. The furrowed brows, the write-up in the liner notes, the wealth of coverage around it… You would think this to be one of the greatest Australian albums of 2026. Yet I just simply do not get it. "Drip Away" eschews the plodding motorik gear, actually pressing on the gas a little bit and managing to achieve the same upbeat vibe that every Melbourne-based post-punk has championed since COVID. "Heat" has a melody reminiscent of "Vad Hände Med Dem?" but lacks the weariness. The promise of happiness is extremely tiresome especially when there seems to be no pleasure taken in the entire ordeal.
This record feels like the medium by which the dude who wears band shirts to work everyday can rhetorically ask "HAVE YOU HEARD OF TOTAL CONTROL AND RMFC? DID YOU KNOW THEY USED TO BE IN TOTAL CONTROL AND RMFC? YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY LISTEN TO TOTAL CONTROL AND RMFC!". Thank you, bro. I have indeed listened to TOTAL CONTROL and RMFC. Actually, now that you mention it, I actually quite like TOTAL CONTROL and RMFC. I think I might just go listen to those records instead.
Released by Static Shock and Anti Fade. Listen here: https://stationmodelviolence.bandcamp.com/album/station-model-violence
cometdust