Collision Course - Paranoid Humanoid

Collision Course

Paranoid Humanoid
self-released; 2019

​3.8 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

Being a musician is not easy. I spent most of my twenties and some of my thirties try to make it in this business which I did have some mild success in. Prior to that I got a degree in composition. The thing is once the bug bites it never really leaves. That seems to be the case for Anton Schindler. He has spent some time putting in the hours, playing shows, and having things fall apart so you can build them back up.

Schindler got together and formed Collision Course with Robert Gosling (lead guitar), Jeff Toledo (drums) and Adam Robert (bass) to create a four-song demo entitled The Demo Tapes. I listened to it and my god does this remind me of my high school days. I was a teenager in the ‘90s and was raised on Nirvana and The Smashing Pumpkins. The opening song “Nameless” sounded like it was off of Gish by The Smashing Pumpkins mixed with a couple of other 90's bands. They implement a rocking verse and and even more loud chorus  All things considered it might be the best song on the EP.

Up next is “Blue Angel” which is a pretty straightforward grunge inspired song although there are some great transitions. I loved the kind of military like Metallica-esque breakdown and falsetto vocals. The band have some more success with “Doctor” which is actually more like a mix between ’90’s alternative and ’70s classic rock in same way but man does this come out of the gate hard. The band rocks out hard on "Suicide" and "Italian Cusine". They close with “Rut” which is an eight plus minute song.

One of the keys besides hard work I always point in my reviews is that band’s should find a signature sound and concept. Let's think about that. Take two disparate acts Sigur Rós and The White Stripes. They are very different brands but they have very defined styles and an image and sound that really is identified. This is a trait you will find almost ubiquitously when it comes to celebrated musicians.

This release showcase the band can write a song and have a heavy influence from ’90s music. They also were forming a very firm foundation in which they can build from here.

​Overall, I say this is a really good release. I look forward to hearing more.

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