Daniel Striped Tiger

Daniel Striped Tiger myspace

Originality is something, if not the most important thing that i value in music (asides from being good, obviously). I have utmost respect for artists/bands that manage to take their influences, putting their own spin to it and keep pushing a genre forward. Punk music isn't generally known for it's originality. Punk was never about technicality or how well you can play your instruments. But strangely enough a lot of talented musicians was born out of playing this type of music. Bands like Minutemen, Husker Du, Fugazi, Rorschach, Indian Summer and Off Minor have proven time and time again that punk music doesn't always have to be one-dimensional and that it's possible to bring something new to the table.

Daniel Striped Tiger are one of those current bands that i believe are doing something exciting and different. The Desert Bird was an ep that they put out in 2004 and was my introduction to the band. One word that i use to describe the band would be "ambitious". The ep contains 4 tracks of angular and noisy post-hardcore with a lot of tricky rhythm sections and discordant melodies more than you can shake a stick at. The two guitars in the band proved to be effective as they keep cutting through the rhythm section with clever little leads and twangs. They somewhat reminds me of Wolves and Stop It! but with more grit.

Condition, released in 2005 is the band first LP and probably their most ambitious work to date. The LP showcases DST adventurous and progressive nature throughout the album. The sudden break in "Slalom" followed by a trumpet/sax solo (!), the post-rocky middle section of "Your Birthday (cake)", and DST use of dynamics in epic instrumental "The Untuned Piano In The Assembly Hall" are just few examples of how far this band has come from their previous efforts. And the best thing about it is all these changes are done effortlessly and doesn't sound forced. Capital Cities, their second LP follows similar sound with less emphasis on experimentation and better flow songs and songwriting.

Luckily for me Daniel Striped Tiger are touring Australia in May! I am so keen for those Brisbane shows. Since most of their releases are still available, i only put up Daniel Striped Tiger split with Sinaloa which i believe to be out of print. "Untying Knots" is probably one of the best songs they have ever done.















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Converge

Converge website
Converge myspace

I remember when i first bought Jane Doe on cd in 2003. It was my first exposure to Converge's music and i remember hating it upon first listens. I hated it as much as i didn't "get" it. The chaotic music, the dog barking vocals, the odd time signatures were too much for me. However, just like most of my favorite albums, it grew on me. Big time. It ended up changing my view on what extreme music could possibly offer. Jane Doe still remains as one of my favorite albums until today.

Converge once described themselves as "hardcore kids with leftover Slayer riffs". And that gives you fairly an idea of what they sound like. Converge started in 1990, and their sound were greatly influenced by what was going on around that time. Nineties hardcore is known as an era when a lot of bands incorporates elements of metal into their sound. Besides being influenced by metal bands such as Slayer, Anthrax, Entombed and a lot of crossover bands (D.R.I, Suicidal Tendencies), Converge also taken cues from noisier bands such as Today Is The Day, Starkweather and who i believe to be their biggest influence, Rorschach.

Fast forward a few years, they have since released another two excellent studio records, You Fail Me (2004) and No Heroes (2006). They also put out Unloved and Weeded Out in 2003, which i believe is a compilation of demos and live tracks. It's about time they come out with a new album, which is pretty much the main point of this post because they just posted 2 videos of them playing a new song.

The first video is of them playing the new song in a studio. Its just intrumentals but my god it's good. The pull-off's riffs, the d-beat drumming, the crushing slow part at the end. What's not to like? The second video features a short interview with Nate (bass) and bits of them playing a recent show in Philly. It has parts of them playing "Plagues," "No Heroes" and of course the new song with vocals. I also put up my video of them playing "Concubine" in Brisbane 2 years ago just because.

CONVERGE New album out soon on Epitaph/Deathwish