I consider myself to be a rather large fan of At the Drive-In. While I have admittedly not been a fan of theirs for that long, they are probably the only band that I play constantly on a regular basis. However, I am in general a bigger fan of their later works, particularly
Relationship of Command and
In/Casino/Out. Thus, when I finally got around to acquiring their first EP,
Hell Paso I was expecting to have a distaste for it, especially since I hadn’t enjoyed
Alfaro Vive, Carajo! that much. What I got out of
Hell Paso was surprisingly fun and energetic album that actually felt more focused then its follow up.
The overall sound of the album is most easily compared to that of
Acrobatic Tenement; the band plain sounds like they’re enjoying their time in the studio. The band is remarkably tight for it being their first recording, with the trademark ATD-I guitar interplay being readily apparent and solid work from early drummer Bernie Rancun. While the bass work isn’t what it would be in the future, that’s mainly due to the fact the production on the album is, at best, shoddy; with an echo-y feel being present on the entirety of the album. However, the crap production actually helps the album more than it hurts it, with much of the albums charm coming from the fact that its all so cheap.
Even more so than on
Alfaro Vive, Carajo!, Cedric and Jim’s vocals are similar almost to a fault, as often it’s quite difficult to differentiate between the two. What saves it is that the lyrics are normally unintelligible anyways, so you’re left with their squeaky (and somehow gruff) voices belting out nifty little vocal harmonies to sing along to.
Grand Mox Turkin, for example, has Cedric and Jim babbling incoherently for much of the song, yet it somehow manages to be the most fun song to sing along to on the album.
Emptiness is a Mule ends up being the standout song on the album, however, sounding like an early and less restrained version of
Transatlantic Foe. Clocking in at 5:30 (over half the album), there are heavy riffs a plenty, combined with an almost western-tinged intro that make it one of the most dynamic early-ATD-I songs around.
Perhaps the best compliment I can give
Hell Paso is that despite the production, it’s probably the best car record At the Drive-In ever put out. It’s a rocking 3-song EP, with some of the heaviest riffs to ever make their way onto a record featuring Cedric’s prepubescent wail. It should be a required listen for any fan of At the Drive-In, and even if you couldn’t care less about them, you’d be remiss to not at least try driving down a highway with
Emptiness Is a Mule blasting from a brand new stereo system.
