A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the “The Beast” b/w “Rebecca” split 7” single by The Drowns and Wonk Unit. Perhaps just to prove how versatile they can be, The Drowns’ “other” recently-released split 7” single (shared this time with Wonk Unit) illustrates just how far the band can stray from their established punk pedigree and steer into something closer to rockabilly without crashing, terribly. Some fans will scoff at such a change and they’re well within their rights to do so (I did) – after having played punk rock so well for so long, embarking on such a change is a little baffling and, when one hears it, listeners will find that their confusion has yet to be relieved.
In fact, fans may have to actively resist the urge to blink, flinch or recoil after needle catches groove and “The Beast” settles in to open the A-sde of the single. They’ll be surprised when reverb-touched appear to have replaced the chunky punk that characterized the band’s previous output, and made to question what band they’re hearing when vocals lines like, “There’s a sound on the wind like a nuclear bomb/ But the noxious smell is the thick of the fog” play through, because they sound just about as far from what fans expect of The Drowns as it’s possible to get – and there doesn’t appear to be any relief in sight. When extended vowels hang in the mix through the chorus, listeners will finally realize that this is no joke – and that previous confusion will be replaced by frustration. Granted, there’s no question that The Drowns have the chops to carry what they’re doing on this single off, but fans will eventually come to the conclusion that what they’re hearing is neither what they need nor what they want to hear from the band – and will be happy when this three-minute mistake ends.
…Except the experiment represented by “The Beast” proves not to be concluded as listeners switch sides and, while expecting a brand of hardcore that Wonk Unit are famous for, are met with something that could easily be mistaken for melodic new wave. For two minutes and fifty-five seconds, listeners will find that they’re being gently patted with lean, sinewy punk which features a smattering of keyboards on top where they were actually hoping to get their faces melted and their senses battered. Granted, the sound isn’t bad but, again, it’s not at all what any fan expects from this band. It’s so far from normal, in fact, that some listeners might be left wondering if the wrong single was inserted into the wrong sleeve at the factory and, if not, wonder what the hell happened to those bands to make them change so dramatically. That was certainly the condition in which this critic was left – so much so that I went online to find the songs there – to confirm that they were, in fact, the same songs. Rest assured that the songs were the same, and I was left to wonder what the point of this single was – and for that question I was left no answer. [Bill Adams]
Artist:
https://thedrownsrock.com
https://www.facebook.com/thedrowns
https://www.instagram.com/thedrowns/?hl=en
https://wonkunit.com
https://www.facebook.com/wonkunitband
https://wonk-unit.bandcamp.com
Album:
The “The Beast” b/w “Rebecca” (Split 7” single) is out now. Buy it here on bandcamp.
