Solenoid Album Reviews

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Solenoid Demo (2004)
Solenoid Demo (2005)

Solenoid Demo (2004)

Out in the Cold / Grand Dad Head / Divide / Puppeteer / Number Three

Hailing from Genk City, Belgium’s current hotbed for dirty-ass rock ‘n’ roll bands, Solenoid recently delivered their not to be misunderstood mission statement in the form of a five-song demo. Even though vocalist Frenz and one of the guitar players (Roel “130 dB’s is about okay if you ask me” Paulussen) already appear in other bands (the singer in local favorites The Killbots, the tall guitar player in scumbag unit Mr. Mama), they have a sound that’s entirely their own. Influenced by, and using the classic hard rock twin guitar assault, they laid down a couple of cuts that hover between straightforward hard rock à la Saxon and (early) Iron Maiden on the one hand and ugly, ‘get the fuck outta my way’-thrash in Motörhead-style on the other hand. Despite the low-budget recording, it sounds pretty good (maybe a bit more bass and guitar madness would’ve made it even more effective), as it’s the kind of stuff that takes no prisoners. I mean, these guys can obviously play (those twisting, parallel guitar lines are exactly what decibelman has been waiting for his entire life), but it’s as obvious they’re willing to give up unnecessary finesse for raw energy, which is something they have in abundance. While the sturdy, no-nonsense rhythm section of Patrick Vanderhenst (a dreadlocked cannibal playing punk-styled drums in a hard rock band) and Maarten Geraerts (Mr. Cool-until-you-lit-my-fuse-which-is-fuckin’-short) provide the music with a rock-solid foundation, the guitar-wankery is what’s most striking about this band. WHO THE HELL DO DECIBELMAN AND HIS SIDEKICK AREND HAMELRIJCK THINK THEY ARE? Gorham and Robertson? Smith and Murray? Downing and Tipton? And then … there’s Frenz. Try to imagine a bearded pervert who merges the outrageous, foaming-at-the-mouth single-mindedness of a wrathful reverend on speed with the venomous insanity of a deranged German with rabies. I mean, if this guy gets in the mood, he’s out of his mind and seemingly interested in only one thing: "can I roar this microphone to pieces"? Alternating gruff growls with trademark screams and an occasional (early) Halford-twist (2:43 into “Divide”), he makes sure the band’s music will even offend plenty of fans of classic hard rock looking for a slick machine. About the music: as could be expected, a fair share of it follows the classic patterns, but that also makes sure that in-your-face rawk like “Out in the Cold” and “Puppeteer” are effective blasts that send a whole lotta sweat, concrete riffs and climactic guitar duels your way. The other tracks are a bit different, “Number Three” because it betrays a love for ‘70’s rock (Thin Lizzy) channelled through a meat grinder, “Grand Dad Head” because it sounds like Vietnamese punk-blues and “Divide” because it’s a COMPLEX song that’s bookended by a lot of furious noise (with especially good ole Frenz checking out his possibilities), while the minutes in between function as “the extended middle part with brutal stops, rumbling drums parts and furious roaring.” I guess this doesn’t make much sense, but they don’t either, so blame them. But that’s exactly the charm of Solenoid: they threw their influences (hundreds of them, ALL involving ear damage!) in a blender, but the blender didn’t work, so what they do instead is pelting you with their grimy buckets of filth. Those who think rock ‘n’ roll should be made by Colgate boys with a fancy image better run, because these guys take torn denim and leather into the 21st century and they dedicate it to you, the rambling drunk motherfucker with the broken zipper on the first row.

More information and MP3’s on their website (http://www.supersolenoid.tk/). Order a demo and rejoice.

Solenoid Demo (2005)

Angel Spray / Down the Dream / Short But Swell / Trash Day / Young Man

Comin' hot on the heels of their first demo, the second slab of Solenoid gore is definitely a strong leap forward. Basically, things haven't changed that much - there's still the twin guitar-attack, a possessed maniac on the microphone and a rhythm section that that repeatedly wants to take things into the punk realm, but that's exactly their charm. Although… maybe "charm" isn't the appropriate word, because, you know, these guys have beards and beer breaths. All kidding aside, this second demo again displays a filthy merger of NWOBHM, Motörhead-styled straightforwardness and a punk ferocity copped from eloquent bands such as The Supersuckers, AC/DC and The Hellacopters (back in the day when they were smelly). The big difference, however, is that it sounds a whole lot better this time around, all the instruments demonstrating more muscle and the vocals trampling the ones one Demo #1. Highlight "Angel Spray" immediately kicks off the proceedings with a punk-ish intro and next a blast of pure energy. Vocalist Frenz roars his way throughout the song as if he's wearing a bearskin (DEATH TO FALSE METAL!) and carrying a 45 pound wooden stick, the guitars intertwine with the eagerness of copulating rabbits and the manners of pig crawling in the mud, the team of Monke (bass) and Patrick (drums) tries to keep up with a rock solid foundation. Two nice aspects about the great opener: halfway into the song, there's suddenly a plodding Black Sabbath-styled part with actually the same effect on the vocals that was used for that band's "Planet Caravan," while the verses somehow succeeded in reminding me of the chorus of Bad Religion's "Change of Ideas." But I like Bad Religion! As well as books on aero-hydronamics and the Taiwanese cuisine! The momentum is carried on with the two next songs, as "Down the Dream" is a charged piece of sing-along hard-rock ("TONIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGHHTTT!") featuring a couple of MELODIC GUITAR SOLOS; and "Short But Swell" (actually the longest song by far) being this demo's "Divide," a multi-parted mid-tempo doomfest featuring stretched vocals (dig the "I like to see you nearly naked on my bed"-parts!! And it's only nearly naked!), some deliciously mind-numbing riffing halfway the song and the demo's coolest climax (those "LOOK IN MY EYES"-parts sound as if they were recorded in the devil's bowels, no less). The last two songs are a bit different, in that they're slightly catchier (*insert middle finger*), "Trash Day" starting off with an early AC/DC-groove that soon transcends into something that would've fit on any early Iron Maiden album (and it works!), while "Young Man" is a frantic chunk of hardrockingrimyboogiepunkblues that has more tempo shifts than an average Formula 1-race. Personal moment of joy: Monke's vocals in the background that make 'em sound similar to those of the Reigning Sound's retro-garagepunk. These guys will never be a huge commercial success, will never attract giggling girls asking for autographs on their bellies and aren't likely to become grandma's favorites, but I doubt they really care about that. You may have a bone to pick with the alarming lack of subtlety and good taste, but at least they're in it for the right reasons and I bet that ten years down the road, these twenty minutes of unapologetically brash in-your-face rock will still sound better than most if the things you have said today. If you say you heard a more sincere and entertaining demo of this kind lately, you're a liar. Now excuse me while I... TONIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGGGGHHHHTTTT !!!!!!