72nd and Central - 72nd and Central

 72nd and Central

72nd and Central
self-released; 2013

3.6 out of 5

By Sean Dennison

72nd and Central is the debut album from 72nd and Central, the "culmination of a ten-year effort by frontman Chapman Suther." A decade's worth of patience and creativity has a lot riding on it, so how does 72nd and Central sound?

"My Weapon of Choice" kicks off the album with a red herring, just a couple of nondescript guitar strums before a blistering wall of sound falls upon the ears. The boys claim Tool, Nirvana, Modest Mouse and Brand New among their influences, and all are heard in this song, from the heavy-ass guitar play to the thick timber of the drumming. The album follows in sonic suit.

The guitar work is aggressive and impressive, sort of reminds me of Sunny Day Real Estate for some reason. Could be the texture, or maybe they just sound similar. The drumming is fantastic on this album, especially the licks on "Does He Know." Grunge is also a huge element on the tracks. The churning guitar riffs, crunchy bass rhythms that threaten to snap your neck and of course the drumming. Seriously the percussion on this album is beastly.

This is biased, (but then, so are all music reviews, right?), but what I enjoyed most about 72nd and Central is how the well the album emulates its influences. True, it doesn't add anything new, but the compositions are tight as hell. The smooth interplay among the musicians on "Mask of the People" adds to the overall feeling of paranoia conveyed by the song. Same with the next track, "This Place is like a Ghost Town," when subdued instrumentation, of less decibel-level than most of the album, build off each other rather than vie for the listener's intention. The result? It is a cohesive, if dirty statement, on the power of rock.

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