Glass Bones

 

Modern folk punk is a strange little genre. Sometimes It has less to do with either folk music or punk but rather wearing patches on your clothes, not caring whether your guitar's in tune or not (which usually means purposefully making sure it's not,) hopping on a train, being rather dismissive about your skills as a singer/guitarist/whatever, and screaming a lot. Sometimes its all about heart on your sleeve musings, feeling sorry for yourself, and posting random videos to social media. Many times it comes off as recycled hippie music which as about as far from punk rock as you can get.

But sometimes—sometimes, thankfully— it comes charging out of the garage on all cylinders, fearless, with a tank full of gas, ready to take on the world.

Thank god for Straight Line Arrival.

Straight Line Arrival is the vehicle for one Sky Husabye to vent, wail, and rock out to his heart's content.

 

Inward musings abound on these tunes, and there's plenty of wailing at the walls, screaming for change and deliverance, but plenty of fun also. Check out the witty Rentals-like keyboard fills on "Good Times Blues," the toe-tapping freeness of the title track "Glass Bones," and the train track rhythm of "Stuffed Elephants." Sincerity is a true hallmark of punk and of rock 'n' roll in general—no room for posers (although there's plenty of posers in rock 'n' roll, don't get me started)—and anyone can scream their lungs out about social injustices and personal affronts but it only matters when you believe them. And when Husebye hollers and rants about a father who wasn't there and his hope to not wind out the same, you believe him. When he yells about breaking bones and more its less complaining, not exactly explaining, but most definitely cathartic, and you believe him. When he straight-faced tells about how his day is going in the song "Probably Not" he comes off sincere, not all singer-songwriterish, but honest, matter of fact, hey, this is what I see right now and I'm putting it down in song for you. If that's not "folk music" right there, then I don't know what is.

 

I've been lucky to come across a few really good newer folk punk/anti-folk/qrunk (whatever you want to call it) bands of late such as the Worst Generation, Apes of the State, and Wingnut Dishwashers Union and I'm happy to report that Straight Line Arrival is just as deserving as praise. 

 

Pre-order at Bandcamp right here.

 

12-2017