Challenge For A Civilized Society (Kill Rock Stars)
by Bob Ham
This Olympia trio has been pumping out distortion-heavy monster sounds for six years, and have graced us with another jewel in their crown in the form of Challenge for a Civilized Society. The title of the album will give you a good indication of the lyrical content within. Justin Troper takes on information overload (“Data”), the abundance of electronic sounds being pumped out of the radio these days (“No Tech”), and the basic alienation of living in this modern world.
Unwound breaks no new ground in terms of their sound, sticking to their tried and true formula of Big Black-like guitar histrionics, tribal bass, and wonderfully off-kilter drum beats, but that is in no way a put-down. These three have cultivated a wonderfully recognizable sound and still manage to continually amaze with each release.