Album Review: Mob Neutrality by The Brass

The Brass are a five piece melodic hardcore band from Portland, Oregon. Consisting of Matt Forbes on lead vocals, Ryan Brodie and Brander Mercer on guitars, Adam Martin on bass and Neil Bryan on drums, the band released their latest EP Mob Neutrality in August. After some very positive recommendations from friends I decided to check it out.

Mob Neutrality opens with Audience. Starting out with a rolling drumbeat, the song wastes little time in getting to the real meat of the song. Forbes’ vocals are the thing that struck me first, they have a raspy and powerful quality that give the band some urgency to their sound. The guitars and drums give the track its energy and the two combined create a magnificent sound. Audience is about looking back at your past and thinking about how the things you did then affect what happens in the present. Great Dying has a longer introduction which does a great job of building towards the vocals. When the vocals do begin there’s a feeling of anger in Forbes’ voice that really made my ears prick. I wanted to know where this would go. I really enjoyed the switch to a more melodic chorus, allowing the track to really get into your head. It also allowed the heavier sounding verses to have more of an impact. The track looks at how generations have not looked after the world and how it will affect people in the future. The third track, Post Election Day, was released as a single before Mob Neutrality’s release. Listening to the song it’s clear to see why. The opening hey! hey! hey!s welcome you into the song and immediately make you feel involved. The song sets itself up to be shouted along to by a passionate crowd in a sweaty bar or basement. Post Election Day is about being angry and upset after the election and the disbelief that people wouldn’t have voted for the winner. I would assume that this song is a direct response to the fact that Trump got elected and how hard it is to fathom that this happened.

The fourth song, No Avail, starts with a nice little bass line from Martin that leads us nicely to a mid tempo song about keeping trying to push forward despite all of the trials and tribulations that life throws at you. This song really allows the guitars to stand out and there’s some serious shredding going on. Think A Wilhelm Scream or, in the UK, Darko and you’ll get what I mean. The song is packed with hooks that really draw you in and will have you wanting to listen over and over again. Don’t Hit Send is the first track on the EP that plays around with its tempo. This really helps keep the listener listening intently to Mob Neutrality. I really like the subject that The Brass address on this song. It’s about thinking through the messages you send online and how easy it is to write something in the heat of the moment and then regret it afterwards. Since the creation of the Internet and social media it’s become too easy to be offensive and be able to hide behind your keyboard and it creates a horrible world for everyone. The penultimate track is named The Sibling’s Song. Perhaps unsurprisingly this is a deeply personal song about protecting a loved one. It certainly feels like the most emotional song and, at times, you can hear some hurt in Forbes’ vocals. I enjoyed the use of gang vocals and harmonies during the song, these added an extra level of emotion to the song. It’s something I wish the band had done more throughout the EP. The final song is Citizen You. As with all good releases, the band save one of the most powerful songs for last – ensuring that Mob Neutrality ends with a bang. After a slow build that lets you know things are about to go off, it feels as if the song goes at full throttle for the majority of its duration. It leaves you breathless but in the best possible way. It’s another track that really allows for some big crowd participation and I’m always here for that. Superb way to finish the EP.

Melodic hardcore isn’t always my go to sound when picking things to review but I’m glad I was pushed towards Mob Neutrality. The undoubted highlight for me was Matt Forbes’ vocals, they really give the band their own unique sound. If you like bands that shred and gruff vocals with interesting song content then The Brass are a band you should be listening to.

Stream and download Mob Neutrality on Bandcamp here.

Like The Brass on Facebook here.

This review was written by Colin Clark.