Belgium’s noisiest export since deep-fried food, The Sonic Redemption, blasts out of the speakers with a new blazing single, “Pissing Contest,” a scathing anthem about the folly of humanity played at top volume.
On the first spin, this one’s just a gorgeously unhinged ruckus. But look a little closer, and you’ll notice the clever commentary bubbling up through all that distortion. “Pissing Contest” is a riddance to ego-driven conflict, a brawling track that lays bare the absurdity of our desire to win. Consider it therapy included headbanging and broken mic stands.
Frontman Dominique De Vos growls and preens his way through every line with all the pomp and circumstance of a man who’s watched one too many bar fights, maybe caused a few, too. His voice, a growl, and a sneer, shares the no-frills ethos of the band, which is to play hard, play loud, play it like you mean it, and never, ever take yourself too seriously.
He’s backed by young guitar sorcerer Jelle De Vos, who seems to play guitar like he’s trying to chase demons out of his amp, all scuzzy riffs, razor-sharp licks, and just a hint of danger. And in the chair behind the kit, Bram Decrock doesn’t so much keep time as declare war on it, pummeling his sticks with an infectious energy that could wake the dead and perhaps give them a nosebleed to boot.
“Pissing Contest” fits snugly in the sweat-stained interstice between punk and hard rock, a dirty brute echoing Motörhead amid a Red Bull bender and the spirit of early Ramones if they’d tuned up instead of tuning out. The chaos serves tight musicianship, some tongue-in-cheek storytelling, and a maxim for what’s becoming a time-worn mode of listening to music to shake things up until your walls and your worldview show a little crack.
The Sonic Redemption won’t fix the world, but it sure will make you feel righteous about it when doing so. “Pissing Contest” is a siren that reminds us that sometimes the most real thing we can do is laugh, rage, and rock out like all get out. Plug in, turn it up, and keep breakables out of reach.
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