Glam/Punk for the masses!
Well this is a big surprise! A glam band from Germany was not what I was expecting when I received this CD to review! From a country that usually gives us either euro-pop dance music, or more extreme forms of metal, this is something usually found in Sweden.
So when I say glam, what I mean is the original glam from the 70's, not the poser stuff from the late 80's! 2nd District come out stamping big boots and flicking glitter, with a singer in Marc Ader, he gives the band a voice that jumps somewhere between Marc Bolan, David Bowie and John Lydon.
First song, '19th Solider' starts off fast paced and sounds a little like a more tuneful version of The Sex Pistols, as does next song 'Too Many People'. Title track 'Emotional Suicide' is a little like T-Rex but with more chugging guitar riffs. There's a cover of the old Wayne County "classic", 'Stuck On You', which is a glam gem.
One of the highlights is 'Young & Disorderly' which could easily be a pop/punk song by Bowling For Soup, with the high-pitched catchy vocals, chugging guitars and happy, upbeat feel. Love it! The guitars get heavier and the bass lines pling out in 'Too Late' which is another memorable song in the vein of Hardcore Superstar or Toilet Boys. Last song, 'Yeah, Yeah, Yeah' sums the band up to a tee, with rock'n'roll music and the camp John Lydon vocals over the top.
2nd District have one of those sounds that is familiar with the ability to still be original due to the bizarrely drawn influences from bands that I would never expect in the same room. There is the Sex Pistols attitude and cockiness, with a mixture of Silver Sun's bubblegum pop/rock harmonies and 60's influence, with some T-Rex and a splash of Rancid added for good measure, whilst David Bowie stands nodding in approval.
The bottom line is that this glam/punk music of is never going to be a major genre, because of the contrast between masculine and feminine sounds. How this works, I don't know but it does, but I can't get away from the fact that it's a bit like flicking through a porn mag. It's good, but I feel kind of guilty doing it...