This has been an overall kick ass year for punk rock/classic pop punk. So many bands from all over the world have been making their presence known with wonderful full length LPs but another part of the underground scene I quite enjoy as well is finding a cool split. A split is a fine art and when done right, it can get you into a couple great bands. This is the case with one coming your way soon featuring two from the St. Louis,MO area, both having a great love for horror and classic pop punk but each having their own unique presence. I had first heard of Eaten Back To Life a couple years ago and then the newer Horror Section more recently who have seemed to be quick in gaining a following right from their inception. They've teamed up to put out a split showing their best work yet and it's aptly named "Split In Two". That's what I want to make sure you guys know about this time!
The songs were partially recorded but fully engineered, mixed, and mastered by Gabe Usery who is also the drummer of Horror Section at Encapsulated Studios. Additional recording of all guitars and bass for Horror Section were recorded by Tommy Boyer at the Ripped Room. Eaten Back To Life bass was recorded by Eric Perry at Slug Studios. The cover which has a punk rock zombie sliced in half with its guts and blood spelling out the band names was done by the talented Ole O'Brian of Ole Art. The colors are great and it looks awesome as a poster too. I love it. The mighty Eccentric Pop Records who is easily becoming my favorite American label has a pre-order up and running already with the official release date of September 4th quickly approaching for the LP. It has been pressed on toxic green colored vinyl with digital download and is limited to 300 copies. In addition to that, the record comes with an eleven card trading set featuring custom, full color artwork done by Brad Fann for each song on one side and the corresponding lyrics on the other. That's a pretty cool alternative to the standard insert you usually get inside of a record jacket! You know, if you're a collector dork like me haha. Digital only will be available through the label's bandcamp page and if you only do CDs, the bands have you covered with one that's self released and you can get by writing to them.
Ok, let's get into the songs! There's ten in total, five from each band which I think is a perfect amount. Side A belongs to Horror Section and opens up strong with "Homecoming". It's right away a great representation of their 90's to second wave sounding melodic pop punk. Think anywhere from The Lillingtons to Teenage Bottlerocket. Teflon Dave's dreamy, Dr. Frank-esque vocals add a nice contrast against the backdrop of very much horror themed lyrics he writes and creates a crossover effect to traditional pop punk fans who don't usually listen to the genre this theme is usually found in. They come across as sugary love songs and are super catchy! "Cut You Up" is the only one that goes outside of that formula with a meaner sound and has a great video with clips from A Nightmare On Elm Street(click here to check it out). "Crawling To You" is my favorite on their side with such a pretty melody and some well placed keyboards. Horror Section gave the sweetness and Eaten Back To Life is arriving on Side B to kick your ass with a much different vibe. Nick's growling vocals set a scarier tone in the songs that also pull from the same kind of musical influence but it has a bolder approach with guitar solos that have almost a metal feel. They never cross into typical horror punk though due to the overall foundation and beautiful harmonies added in by Tommy. Their voices are polar opposites but play off of each other well. "Tall Man", based off of Phantasm(watch the video here), starts out with some eerie keyboards and launches right into their slasher pop punk formula with one of those killer solos I mentioned. As a Ramones fanatic, I like the strong statement they make using few lyrics with "Rhea-M" which also has a cool video(see here) but my favorite is the last one, "Blood And Guts". That's probably one of the most morbidly romantic songs I've ever heard and I adore the vocals.
There's my take on "Split In Two". If you're into punk rock, classic pop punk, or old school horror movies, go place an order with Eccentric Pop! This record definitely has the ability to appeal to many different kinds of listeners due to the approach both Horror Section and Eaten Back to Life have. I can't wait to give it a spin on my turntable. As always, stay tuned to their facebook pages(links can be found in the sentence before last) because it seems like they're always working on something new!
Horror Section is...
Teflon Dave- Lead Vocals, Guitar
Tommy Boyer- Lead Guitar, Vocals
Nick Habit- Bass
Gabe Usery- Drums
All of their songs written by Teflon Dave
Eaten Back To Life is...
Tommy Boyer- Lead Guitar, Vocals
Nick Habit- Lead Vocals, Guitar
Eric Perry- Bass
Jake Pfaff- Drums
All of their songs written by Tommy Boyer
Ok, let's get into the songs! There's ten in total, five from each band which I think is a perfect amount. Side A belongs to Horror Section and opens up strong with "Homecoming". It's right away a great representation of their 90's to second wave sounding melodic pop punk. Think anywhere from The Lillingtons to Teenage Bottlerocket. Teflon Dave's dreamy, Dr. Frank-esque vocals add a nice contrast against the backdrop of very much horror themed lyrics he writes and creates a crossover effect to traditional pop punk fans who don't usually listen to the genre this theme is usually found in. They come across as sugary love songs and are super catchy! "Cut You Up" is the only one that goes outside of that formula with a meaner sound and has a great video with clips from A Nightmare On Elm Street(click here to check it out). "Crawling To You" is my favorite on their side with such a pretty melody and some well placed keyboards. Horror Section gave the sweetness and Eaten Back To Life is arriving on Side B to kick your ass with a much different vibe. Nick's growling vocals set a scarier tone in the songs that also pull from the same kind of musical influence but it has a bolder approach with guitar solos that have almost a metal feel. They never cross into typical horror punk though due to the overall foundation and beautiful harmonies added in by Tommy. Their voices are polar opposites but play off of each other well. "Tall Man", based off of Phantasm(watch the video here), starts out with some eerie keyboards and launches right into their slasher pop punk formula with one of those killer solos I mentioned. As a Ramones fanatic, I like the strong statement they make using few lyrics with "Rhea-M" which also has a cool video(see here) but my favorite is the last one, "Blood And Guts". That's probably one of the most morbidly romantic songs I've ever heard and I adore the vocals.
There's my take on "Split In Two". If you're into punk rock, classic pop punk, or old school horror movies, go place an order with Eccentric Pop! This record definitely has the ability to appeal to many different kinds of listeners due to the approach both Horror Section and Eaten Back to Life have. I can't wait to give it a spin on my turntable. As always, stay tuned to their facebook pages(links can be found in the sentence before last) because it seems like they're always working on something new!
Horror Section is...
Teflon Dave- Lead Vocals, Guitar
Tommy Boyer- Lead Guitar, Vocals
Nick Habit- Bass
Gabe Usery- Drums
All of their songs written by Teflon Dave
Eaten Back To Life is...
Tommy Boyer- Lead Guitar, Vocals
Nick Habit- Lead Vocals, Guitar
Eric Perry- Bass
Jake Pfaff- Drums
All of their songs written by Tommy Boyer
Tracks
Side A(all by Horror Section)
1. Homecoming
2. Survive
3. Cut You Up
4. Crawling to You
5. Deans Daughter
Side B(all by Eaten Back To Life)
6. Tall Man
7. Locked In The Basement
8. Undead
9. Rhea-M
10. Blood and Guts
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