TODAY IS THE DAY: “NEVER GIVE IN”

(We present Wil Cifer‘s review of the new album by Today Is The Day, which will be released on October 3rd by SuperNova Records.)

When it comes to Steven Austin’s demented little band, Today is the Day, expect the unexpected. The only thing aside from Austin’s familiar high-pitched snarl that their 14th album has in common with previous releases is that it’s different than what he has done before. It’s confrontational but in a much different way. Austin has been churning out his jagged blend of grindcore and noise rock for 32 years, so you can’t blame him for wanting to change things up. This might be his least metallic album yet, but that does not stop the music from stabbing your ears as the songs lead you through a labyrinth of personal narrative cloaked in bizarre experimentation.

The mix might catch you off guard. He presents all the elements you expect Steven Austin to use, but bizarrely arranges these sounds into something with more in common with the Butthole Surfers, even amid the clanging of an almost industrial nature. The eerie calm of the vocals makes the mood creepier. “I Got Nothin” is driven by a synth, with whispered vocals coasting over the static pulse. The chorus evokes a more aggressive feeling.

The oddly angular “Intentional Psychological Warfare” finds harsher vocals in collision with a narrative reflecting upon how a car wreck changed his life. The guitar splits the difference and goes with an ’80s punk feel. It all comes together to make sense of this chaos. The title track jangles like something King Missile might have done in the ’90s. It faces the continued attacks of Austin‘s more scathing vocal assaults. Horns in aggressive music can have mixed results but these are preformed by Mac Gollehon, who once played for David Bowie, making a stronger argument for them, as things unwind with fiendish dissonance on “Secret Police”.

Austin‘s spoken vocal approach leads the way into “Psychic Wound” before the more psychotically snarled vocals come in for the chorus. This song works for what it is, but might take a few listens to grow on you a bit; pretty strong start, considering we are now six songs into the album. More frantic drumming drives the sonic exploration that is “The Choice is Yours.” It is one of the album’s more metallic moments when it comes together.

“Pain and Frustration” finds an out-of-key piano clashing against drums and electronic oddities haunting the background. It’s a much more convincing picture of mental illness than what other bands like to toy with, as his demons come sneering out of the mirror at him on this one. It builds into a heavier dynamic that is executed with unconventional instrumentation. The album closes with “The Cleansing,” a song that finds the drone of a simple yet hypnotic guitar pattern as the perfect accompaniment to his suicidal musings.

This is an album that must simmer in your nightmare for a few days before you truly appreciate it, but those tend to stand the test of time, more than someone capturing the most brutal guitar tone you have heard this week. If you go into this album expecting overt heaviness, you are going to come away with introspective heaviness. It is safe to say Austin has secured his place alongside artists like Melvins and Swans, who procure heaviness in their own likeness rather than being dictated by the hallowed halls of heavy metal. The complex emotional disturbances depicted on the album are more heavy mental.

https://supernovarecords.bigcartel.com/
https://todayistheday.bandcamp.com/album/never-give-in
https://www.facebook.com/todayisthedayofficial/