Twin City Faction -Locked in

Wed 11th Apr, 2007 in Music Reviews

Twin City Faction ’s bio drops a lot of names. Chris City, Grant City, Johnny Faction, Jimmy Fatal and DG Chambers are all credited with playing a part in shaping the Australian punk scene in the 1990s in bands like Subversion, Massappeal and Mope. It is not to be unexpected, then, that the band’s most recent LP is punk-rock at its basic and best. Roared choruses, bratty vocals, slightly Americanised accents and few tracks that reach the three-minute mark all reveal a band that knows how to make punk that is true to its roots, with a nod to what’s coming next.

Locked in, the band’s third full-length, works on the metaphor of being – œlocked in’ to the grind of daily life, and aspiring to be more than your job or your mortgage payments. Their music has an urban vibe that resonates in the grinding guitars, clashing drum beats, and of course the lyrics, which manage to be angry and yet still have a sense of yearning.

The 12 tracks on the LP share the same good qualities: they are short, loud and to the point. The band make the wise choice to leave you wanting more by the end, rather than letting their formula become stale. Every note is played with precision and care, with none of the sloppiness that less experienced bands seem to mistake for attitude.
As for standouts, the first track Back in the Game sets the bar high for shredding chords and roared vocals, proclaiming “This is not the end/This is just the beginning” and leaving the rest of the album to live up to the claim.

There are a few unexpected musical surprises along the way, a keyboard tinkle here, some very Blood Brothers-esque moments of vocalist competition there. Track seven Heavy Method is a particularly pleasant one in that it is an instrumental track, an inclusion that TCF are making their trademark. I’ll admit I spent the first listening waiting two-and-a-half minutes for the vocals to kick in; once you realise they’re not going to, however, the rhythmic, restrained chords and lo-fi beats draw you in.

TCF – You’re Dead! cleverly reverses that age-old idea that all punks are a menace to society, and When the City Fell introduces some overt political overtones to the soundscape. Overall, if you like your music loud and your lyrics roared then Twin City Faction might well be the change you’ve been looking for to release you from the grind.