Review Summary: This is pretty sick shit son.
Usurp Synapse are just downright
evil.
Okay, not really, but the first thing you think when you hear the vocals prevalent throughout
Disinformation Fix (Usurp Synapse’s discography) is just how tortured they sound. It’s like the guys getting his skin ripped off, and then having Teriyaki sauce poured over his exposed muscle tissue.
Then, a song like “When Good Pets Go Bad” comes along. All of the sudden, halfway through the song, amidst all the chaos and noise comes a striking, beautifully toned bassline. it’s a strange, out-of-this-world moment, and its those type of things that eventually end up making Usurp Synapse just who they are.
The majority of the album is made up of short, comes-out-the-gates thrashing screamo songs. There is the required dissonance, the juxtaposition of that to sudden clean passages, and massive amounts of strange screaming/growling/barking/whatever the hell you want to call it. The multitude of drummers throughout the collection are all versed in the required grind-esque…wait, who cares about all that ***.
Usurp Synapse pretty much defined the whole “short chaotic intense” screamo sound that other bands like Neil Perry, Jeromes Dream and later Ampere would help develop. They never became extremely unique, but added in little samples (like at the end of Track 28) that gave them a personality other bands of its kind didn’t have. Not trying to position myself like I was a part of the scene back then, but Usurp Synapse was mainly distinguished from just how weird and chaotic their music got. “Making Room for the Worthwhile” moves from a chaotic main section into a quick digital synth into Japanese exclamations in around a minute, the switches happening in around 15 seconds and with little to no warning.
The vocals are probably the most distinct part about Usurp Synapse. As stated before, they’re extremely pained and the closest you’re getting to them is with a mix of the black metal band Satyricon and Joshua Fit For Battle. The song titles, while unimportant, are just as witty as you’d expect from a late-90’s screamo band; “My Spidey Sense is going ***ing Nuts” and “Wrist, Meet Razor” are choice cuts from this. They also had a few notable marketing campaigns, including packaging in blood pills and at one point even giving out razors with one of their splits.
The key to Usurp Synapse is still the abstract, chaotic sound they forged throughout their careers. Regardless of any kind of lineup change, they continued to make relentless emo that relied on extremely dissonant guitars and a chugging rythym section. Its hard to take your ears away from everythign that’s going on; in a very Converge-like way they’re chaotic while always being extremely tight and focused. They also sound just as good on the live tracks as they do on the studio, if not better for the added echo that just gives the music another dimension.
There’s absolutely too much music here to talk any more about. You’d think that over 60 tracks, the band would get a little tired, and they do. It’s a discography though, how can you expect anyone other than the great Devo to keep your interest that long? What this does is gather some of the most intense emo you’re going to hear this side of Angel Hair or Raein. All of that while they add in the occasional flourish into a 90’s midwest emo melody. The songs here range from short and sweet to short and mind blowingly epic, and you’ll be hard pressed to find a double-disc discography that can outlast
Disinformation Fix. I really wish I could give a more accurate summation of the bands sound, but the best I can do is give an amalgamation of other people they sound like. If you’re into emo,
Disinformation Fix is something you’re obligated to at least take a peek into.
Sounds like- Angel Hair mixed with early Jeromes Dream mixed with Saetia mixed with Neil Perry. It’s fairly kickass by anyone’s standards.
