When I was younger, I was a big fan of The Distillers. Female fronted punk? What doesn’t rock about that? That’s what I love so much about my new favourite Norwegian post-hardcore punk rockers, CASTRO. Just released is their fantastic debut album: “The River Need”.
CASTRO are a brand new band, fresh to the ears of the punk community. However, those of the scene who are familiar with their Norwegian punk will definitely want to tune in. Featuring members from Israelvis, Angor Wat and boasting Katja Benneche Osvold from Life… But How To Live It on vocals, CASTRO are essentially a Norwegian punk supergroup.
The album kicks off with Our Loss. Weighing in at just over a minute long, the fast pace and snappy lyrics are enough to start a quick pogo pit. It’s short, sweet and punk gold.
Smooth Operator may look like a filler due to the length, but it’s much more than just a track to be glazed over. The lyrics are sung fast, the kick drum doesn’t find time to slow down, the guitar’s are doing overtime and before you know it, the fun is all over. If you want to fully appreciate this, you’re going to want to put it on loop a couple of times. Spin this track a couple of times, you won’t regret it.
“It’s a long, long way. It’s a long, long way”, Back To Basic. This has to be a highlight for me. The riff is metallic punk, the bass is heavy and the drums are pacy. The aggression of the instrumental behind the rock style sung vocals go hand in hand. From start to finish, you’re headbanging. You’ll be singing the chorus to this one for a while afterwards.
The best of The River Need to me is the short, essential straight up punk songs. (Your) Hidden Agenda (Is So Obvious) is just that. The snare is raw, the riffs are crunchy, the vocals kill and the band take it straight to the punch. There is no messing around on this one.
Named after the album, The River Need is another favoruite track. CASTRO manage to balance fast and slow perfectly, finding a good common ground inbetween key speed parts. The track is much more dark and personal. It’s a sad punk song.
Other tracks to keep your ears open for are Indigo, Detective, Pagan Lullaby and Paleface, which I personally recommend.
21st century punk is killing it. CASTRO have found themselves an exceptional sound and deserve recognition. If you don’t know them yet, get to know them right now. The River Need is an impressive release and I’m very excited to see what comes in the future for the Norwegian punk rockers.
You can buy The River Need by CASTRO on the Boss Tuneage store.
Listen to Our Loss by CASTRO below and form an opinion:
Until next time folks, don't drink and drive.
What did you think of The River Need? Let me know in the comments below!
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