The new album from Mind Days, Course of Action, is every bit as corrosive as their debut, Nerve Endings, reviewed by me here. That record, like this one, is on PNKSLM, and the label, as usual, exhibits remarkable skill in finding bands that sound like the world's ending but they're gonna keep on playing even as things burn.
While "Beasts Ahead" reveals a bit of refinement to the Mind Rays mode of attack, the snarled "Makeshift Weaponry" is nothing if not bad intent given voice. "Cease/Commence" is a rush of whirring noise and aggression, while the peppy "Pristine Condition" echoes classics from the class of 1977. It's a shouty bit of business, like lots of what's on Course of Action, but it is, like "Seasonal Disorder" a uniquely modern spin on these punk forms. "Single File Line" seems to be the peak here, with things pushed into overdrive and vocals rasped as if the void was opening up behind these players. If closer "Godless Clay" hints at a more subtle approach from this act, it is one that's thankfully not pursued on lots of Course of Action. Instead, Mind Rays set things on fire over and over here, and the flames are glorious.
Course of Action is out on Friday via PNKSLM.
More details on Mind Rays via the band's official Facebook page.
[Photo: Tom Roelofs]