“I feel like such a waste of space!”
William Thunder Horse wails into the microphone before letting out a piercing deafening scream that reverberates the speakers. The vocalist/guitarist then cranks the volume up as the distortion kicks in and the rest of the band launches into a frantic mid paced rhythm of Rock n’ Roll fury. This is the opening title track of The Carrion Crawlers latest EP, Live, Sleep, Die. What follows is 5 songs of gritty abrasive no nonsense punk that clocks in at just over 10 minutes. The band blazes through these tunes with ferociousness and just does not let up.
Hailing from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, Carrion Crawlers are a trio of Rez kids playing stripped down bare bones punk. No mixture of metal, or pop, or post, or new wave, just straight up old school punk rock. Their minimalistic style is in the vein of early hardcore punk bands like Adolescents, Dead Boys, Buzzcocks and Social Distortion.
The Carrion Crawlers have been together for a few years, releasing several records and playing shows throughout the upper Midwest. They have gained a following and are starting to make a name for themselves in the DIY Punk scene, playing with such acts as Infuriate and Resistant Culture. Not bad for some Punks from the Rez.
With raw tone guitars, spastic drums and deep bass tones that rides the low end tempos, Carrion Crawlers play short catchy songs that go straight to the point. You can feel the anger in Thunder Horse’s vocals, yet he still manages to add a hint of melody in a sing-songy 7 Seconds sort of way. The band takes a less is more approach to their basic song structure, the music may be simple, but still highly effective and memorable. By the end of the record, there is an infectious need to hit replay.
The Carrion Crawlers songs are full of anger and despair. Which is pretty much the purpose of punk rock. This style of music was always an outlet for outcasts who rebelled against the status quo. Punk music is a culture that questions authority, a community of progressive free thinkers who won’t conform to their mundane surroundings. Punk addresses socio-political issues and searches for meaning while being a way to ease stressful pressures and let off some steam.
Growing up on the reservation, it’s understandable that these guys would want to lash out and express their frustrations. The hardships of reservation life can be overwhelming for a lot of Native Youth, so who could blame these Rez Punx for starting a band to play loud angry songs while screaming out their negative feelings. They don’t seem to care what anyone else thinks. they just do it anyway. There is an enormous sense of freedom in that. The Carrion Crawlers definitely embody the pissed off purity of punk.
Overall, Live, Sleep, Die is another collection of catchy punk rock songs from The Carrion Crawlers. Their simplistic style makes for a fun and memorable listen. The band may not be breaking any musical ground, but the passion is still there. The raw gritty production isn’t slick and over produced, the vocals are not in total harmony but you can still feel the emotion and anger in every scream and the fury in every power chord. And that’s what matters. That’s what punk is about, freely expressing one’s outrage and frustration. The Carrion Crawlers do it quite well, proving that Rez Punk’s Not Dead, it’s just getting started.
Check out The Carrion Crawlers on Bandcamp and Youtube:
https://carrioncrawlers.bandcamp.com/
