Review Summary: Intense, isn't it?
“Why didn’t you kill yourself today?” the opening track “Stay At Home Mom” begs to know. Though, that feeling of disgust doesn’t end at the chorus of this track, the entirety of
Messy, Isn’t It? will churn your stomach with fierce instrumentation and even more intense vocals and imagery. Abrasive and fiery, Dangers’ take on hardcore is messy (believe it or not) and intensely angry. The screaming is relentless. The throat-full bombastic style of delivery brings a ring to your ears and a scowl to your face. Dangers’ first release is certainly a bit sloppy in spots, but it strikes a particular chord with that’s sure to get your blood boiling. It’s like getting hit by a pickup head-on, but instead of rolling over and dying you become so infused with fury you decide to get up and beat the ***ing daylights out of the driver with anything you can get your hands on.
Dangers isn’t holding back, instead they go for a full-fledged attack and bring every weapon in the arsenal. All of the despair and anger can get a bit tiresome, unfortunately making this a wearisome listen, as good as the material may be. Lines like,
"No this ain’t the apocalypse / It’s the way *** has always been / From Sodom to Saddam / Attila to Tienenmen / A quarter million years of human being / A quarter million years as a human stain / We use ten percent of our gorgeous brains / And leave the rest up to cocaine"
make you a little ashamed to be alive. The anguish and utter hopelessness are entirely affecting. It takes a special record to impart such a humongous footprint upon your moods, your feelings: and
Messy, Isn’t It? is that album. The furious guitars are entirely unrelenting throughout the 19 tracks and 37 minutes, save for a brief interlude, “Messy, Isn’t It?” and the outro (Love Poem). Though, entirely harrowing in itself, Dangers refuse to let a moment of serenity go by, as they fill (Love Poem) with the single line,
“It's so nice to wake up in the morning all alone and not have to tell somebody you love them when you don't love them anymore,” spoken apathetically with overlapping voices.
The vocals, by simply “Al,” are absolutely superb and serve as the backbone on Dangers’ latest. Through sheer intensity, Al is incredibly moving and altogether gut-wrenching. The back-and-forth vocals on “I’ll Clap When I’m Impressed” and the
“What the *** is love?” to nail the coffin shut on “Check Please” give me chills every time. It’s impossible to not feel the sting of agony as he utters
”It’s not my fault” to close “Pyramid of Emptiness.” The instrumentation supports the vocals adequately. The percussion tends to fade into the background at times; and it’s usually a little simplistic, but it manages to not take away from the experience, despite it’s inability to add a whole lot of substance. The guitars on the other hand, get the job done- not to mention in vicious and vehement manner, to match the overall intensity of Danger.
Whether it’s a keen sense of hatred, despair, or anguish, it’s difficult not to feel incredibly affected by
Messy, Isn’t It?. It’s disgusting at times, and Dangers forces you to join along in the sheer horrible nature of the music- not by asking nicely, mind you- by shoving a ***ing gun down your throat and screaming in your ears.
