Review Summary: Trap Them return with an enjoyable EP, but it may be time to change things up a little.
When we last left Trap Them they had just released their much acclaimed second full length, Seizures in Barren Praise in 2008. Two years and many tours later they offer their new EP, entitled Filth Rations. While offering nothing new to their sound, Filth Rations displays all the heaviness and despair that fans of the band have come to expect.
The EP starts off fast and pissed with “Carnage Incarnate”, a song they played on their most recent tours. With pounding drums and crunchy bass backing up the squealing guitar, vocalist Ryan McKenney once again tells of the woes of those unfortunate citizens in Barren Praise, the fictional town that most of Trap Them’s lyrics describe. If Seizures told the story of the citizens and Séance Prime told the story of the refugees, then Filth Rations seems to tell the tale of the doomed progenitors of the town.
The album continues with the death n’ roll of “Degenerate Binds” and the awkwardly titled doom song “Dead Fathers Wading in the Bodygrounds.” “Dead Fathers…” is quite slow compared to the other tracks and uses this to create a plodding, yet crushing finale to the new tracks. The song ends with the instruments fading out with dissonant guitar notes while McKenney laments, “We are the old graves digging the new.” The EP ends with a live version of “Digital Dogs With Analog Collars” from the Sleepwell Deconstructor full-length. This seems somewhat awkward after the power shown in “Dead Fathers…”, but it’s interesting to hear the power displayed by the band in a live track.
Compared to the rest of Trap Them’s discography, Filth Rations comes up a little a short, but it’s an enjoyable listen for those who are already fans of the band.
