Architect

Ghost of the Saltwater Machines (Blackmarket Activities)
By Mike Delano

If you’re a band that wants people to buy into your political beliefs, it helps to have some good songs to hook the kids first. Architect‘s got ’em on this album. “Camelot in Smithereens” puts you on edge right from the start with an ominous rumble preceding an explosion akin to Imprint-era VOD if they were marching on the White House. “Uninventing the Wheel” and “Lamplighter” have some seriously groovy riffs in what are otherwise straightforward hardcore brusiers, and when the latter breaks down into the chant of “Fuck tomorrow, live for today,” you don’t want to be anywhere near the pit. The concise nine tracks are mostly a bludgeonfest, but the band shows its range with some brief, interesting experimentation (especially on “I Am Become Death”) that bodes well for their future. The lyrics are all manner of good ol’ smash-the-system hate, with nuggets like “the stars and stripes will soak up the blood” and “I dissent with every breath I take.” Fiery and inspiring enough to make you want to throw some windmills in the Oval Office.
(www.blackmarketactivities.com)