Show Me The Body - Trouble The Water (Album Review)
Tuesday, 01 November 2022
Written by Jack Terry
It's hard to find the words to accurately categorise New York's Show Me The Body. These DIY masters have long delivered their anti-establishment protest songs in raucous, raw settings, and their previous albums, 2016's ‘Body War’ and 2019's ‘Dog Whistle’, displayed a band that was willing to push hardcore in experimental and challenging directions. And on ‘Trouble The Water’ they sound more potent and pissed off than ever before.
Even so, their more expansive side remains. Radiator sounds like a Death Grips and Melvins mashup, while its scratchy hook, "things I've done, things I've done, they follow me", makes sure that it will stick in your brain for a while after it's done. Meanwhile, Out of Place takes a creeping, low-key approach, which results in an electronic bed that makes the skin crawl under vocalist Julian Cashwan Pratt's drawled diatribe.
For the most part though, Show Me The Body leans into their rough and ready side, relying on chunky riffs and harsh, gritty vocals.
Food From Plate sets this scene early on, barely letting up the pressure for even a second. The final third of the album is wall-to-wall violence, with Using It and Demeanor landing as some of their most abrasive work to date.
Show Me The Body also have a spectacular talent for utilising the power of silence. While there is a lot of full-throttle delivery employed, Loose Talk and We Came To Play are punctuated with small breaks in the instrumentation that make the next barrage land that much more solidly.
Show Me The Body has always been a band to take a stand against the societal issues that plague us. With ‘Trouble The Water’, their message has never been so pointed, and coming at a time of global turmoil, expect this to mobilise more people than ever before.
Show Me The Body Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
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