I'm about six months late to the party on this one but I enjoyed it so much that I had to give it a review. When Red Scare Industries release a new album, for me, it's a guarantee that it's going to be very good. That's certainly the case with Tightwire's debut album Six Feet Deep. It was released way back in October but I only just discovered it thanks to a tip from Red Scare's Toby Jeg. The three piece from Minneapolis came personally recommended to Toby by one of the guys from Dillinger Four so you know that they're a big prospect in the scene.
Six Feet Deep is thirteen songs in only nineteen minutes so you can imagine that each song is pretty short and played quite fast. The opening song is named Draggin' Me. It starts out with a distortion filled, sludgy opening before moving into some fast paced Ramonescore pop punk. It's infectious and catchy and has you hooked immediately. It won't be long until you're singing along to this song about having a friend that you realise is bringing you down. Next up is the album’s title track, Six Feet Deep. I really enjoyed how Tightwire started the track with the song’s chorus, this really welcomes you into the song as it's the catchiest part. This is one that will be hanging around in your head long after you remember where you know the words from. On Spell On Me it sounds as if the vocals go up a pitch, getting close to Intruder Blue's trademark high notes. This really softens the overall sound of the track and shows a different side of Tightwire. For the first time on Six Feet Deep, the band show off their wonderful harmonies towards the end of the song. I'm such a sucker for a great harmony so this was something I really enjoyed.
Guts wastes no time in getting started. Three crashes of a cymbal and you're immediately into the song. It's about having the courage to tell someone that you care for how you feel about them because you don't want to be alone. This is a sugary sweet pop punk track that will have you smiling throughout. Pentagram Tattoo is one of a few songs on Six Feet Deep that are less than a minute long. Tightwire do an incredible job of fitting a lot into the fifty-eight seconds that the song lasts for however. It's a punch track about admiring someone from afar. You'll be singing along with every word after just a couple of listens and will also find yourself really caring about what Tightwire are singing about – it's also really relatable. The sixth song, Don't Like To Lose, quickly had me thinking of Teenage Bottlerocket. There's a bouncy quality added to the fast buzzsaw guitars and the pounding drums that gives the song a fresh sound. This is the first song that really allows the band to show off their skills as musicians with a superb guitar solo being squeezed into the track. I also got a bit of a kick out of the claps that appear midway through the song, these will allow for some great crowd participation moments.
If Don't Like To Lose reminds me of Teenage Bottlerocket then the next song Told Ya has The Copyrights written all over it. I loved how it started with some great gang vocals as they belt out the chorus. The pace of the vocals is noticeably quicker, injecting a huge amount of energy into the song that's just brilliant. It's about being right about something, not wanting to rub it in someone's face, and then doing it anyway. The energy continues on Hidden Planet. Being just over a minute long, Tightwire are relentless on this track, barely slowing down at all throughout the song. It's about wanting to get away from the world because it's an absolute mess. It amazes me just how much the band can squeeze into these short songs. The ninth song, Simple Questions continues the less is more style of Six Feet Deep. Tightwire goes from Teenage Bottlerocket, to the Copyrights and now to Dude Ranch era blink-182 with this track about being in high school and wanting to talk to a girl. It's a short and punchy song that will quickly take up a residency in your brain.
The tenth song is titled Body Language. Packed with some more glorious harmonies, this is a rapid fire pop punk number that will really get a live crowd moving – it's exploding with energy. We're getting to the point in the album where you begin to realise just how much information your brain can store as this is yet another real ear worm that you'll be singing instantly. Don't Wanna Wait sees Tightwire return to their softer poppier approach whilst retaining that unstoppable energy. It's about being impatient waiting for someone to stop wasting their time in a bad relationship when they could be in a good one with you. I like this as a subject matter as it's not one I usually hear. It's a very interesting take on the love song. The penultimate track on Six Feet Deep is named Out Of It. This may be the album’s catchiest song, which really is saying something. The brilliant yet simple chorus of "I'm so out of it, I'm so out of it, I'm so out of it, whoa-oh-oh" starts the song and from there we're into a great song about being so drunk that you're not sure what's going on anymore. Last up is the twenty-five second Closing Time. This was the perfect choice to, not only follow Out Of It but, to finish the album as it's about the bar closing and it being time to go home. I hope this is also the song that Tightwire finish their live sets with.
Six Feet Deep is a really great pop punk album and I'm surprised that Tightwire haven't had a lot more press. This really is an album that fans of most of the genres that fall under the punk umbrella will adore. It's fast, fun, full of energy and has lots of great moments but, most importantly, it will get you smiling.
Stream and download Six Feet Deep here: https://tightwirempls.bandcamp.com/album/six-feet-deep
Like Tightwire here: https://www.facebook.com/tightwireMPLS/
This review was written by Colin Clark.
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