DURER: Beyond The Firmament
Durer
Beyond the Firmament
(Thumper Punk Records)
This band was entirely unknown to me before this review, so I don’t have much history
on them. Apparently, the band hails from Scotland, which explains the multiple
references to Great Britain in the lyrics. Musically, what we have here is a very
interesting punk/hardcore EP. Short, fast, loud, and intense! In fact, Beyond the
Firmament blasts through 5 songs in under 9 minutes!
Comparing these guys to anyone, or even pinning them down to a subgenre is difficult.
Song lengths are in the grindcore/powerviolence range, but stylistically that doesn’t
describe the music here. It’s very fast punk rock, in short bursts, but there’s also a
melodic sensibility about it all, and it all has a sort of experimental/artistic edge to it.
The first four songs remind me somewhat of Canadian exports NoMeansNo (not a
Christian band, FYI), with the way they simultaneously channel punk, hardcore, and
indie rock all through a humorous political critique. But then song 5 cues up. It’s a
weird, folksy tune with downplayed sung/talked vocals and acoustic instruments. That
is, all until about the last minute where the folk-punk takes over. We’re talking banjolele,
hurdy-gurdy, electric guitars and the whole gamut—not too unlike a more melodic, less
serious version of Ballydowse.
Lyrically, the band deals with current events through a theological/sociological and
critical lens. Take “Beige World” for instance:
Stupid nationalistic pride
Tell my son he should have died
Because his accent is different to you
But here was born here too
Stoopid nationalistic pride
This outsider has got no-where to hide
Flip me the bird
This is so absurd
Xenophobic bus ride
I can’t stand your white pride
Hateful, divisive, and unkind
It just has to die
Hyper Patriotic Shuttle Ride
We’re gonna conquer space with our national pride
This kind of prophetic voice is much needed in our era where politics so often seems to
override our common Christian faith. The only downside here is just how short this
release is. Go to Thumper Punk Records now and download this immediately. Send
‘em a few bucks too (all their stuff is Pay-What-You-Want), and encourage them to keep
making music!
4/5
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