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Thanx 4 All The Shoes: 'Reaction Starts From Consciousness'

Punk rock is one genre where the oft outcast faces of 'unpolished' and 'raw' can be welcomed with an accepting embrace, rather than being banished and scathed. These are in fact two characteristics that can lend themselves to defining the disposition of the scene, gives it some edge, and that unmistakable resounding 'fuck you' to convention and perfection. Thanx 4 All The Shoes operate very much on this principle.

The Italian four-piece's influences are clear, particularly given their name. If it hasn't been derived from NOFX's seventh studio album, then it is a choice too baffling to attempt to get your head around really. The melodic hardcore essence of the legendary punk band is something that comes through in T4ATS' first EP, "Reaction Starts From Consciousness". High energy is applied to every instrumental layer and a coarse rasp on the vocals helps make the record splutter with passion and confidence.

It is hard to ignore the real DIY quality that is delivered in this unashamedly garage punk sound, and to be honest, it is probably better that way. The rugged quality of tracks like 'Where Angels Start To Fly' and 'Black Shadows' is one that becomes a flavour of endearment, in a way that most bands in any other genre would never get away with. In the playground, punk rock would be the kid with the snotty nose and scruffy hair completed with mischievous cow's lick. He would take a tumble and not even sniffle, he would just rock on his way with bloody knees. This is the attitude that "Reaction Starts From Consciousness" is steeped in. You get the feeling they don't fuck about. They have a simmering onslaught of high-speed drum beats and vocal pummelling to deliver with each new track, to the point when the silence arrives as the CD ends, you feel shattered.

If you are a fan for the brash swagger of punk rock and are sick of it being lost in over-produced albums, this could very well be your thing. It's so energetic I'm sure I imagined the scent of sweat filling my nostrils. But maybe this room is just a bit warm. Whatever the case, Thanx 4 All The Shoes have approached this EP with ferocity and confidence.