by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Personality Cult are the punk band we all need. The North Carolina based solo project turned full band are making blistering punk with larger than life power-pop riffs. Led by Ben Carr, last year saw the release of his self-titled album via Drunken Sailor Records, one of punk’s most consistent labels, an infectious record that spared no volume and explosiveness while creating monstrous hooks. Rattling around your brain with propulsive energy and jagged pop, Carr’s songwriting walks that line better than most, excelling on all ends. Personality Cult has expanded since that release, the line-up now comprising members of Paint Fumes, Mind Spiders, Bass Drum of Death, and beyond. February 14th will see the release of New Arrows, their sophomore album and first with Dirtnap Records (The Hussy, Marked Men, Proud Parents). Produced by Marked Men/Radioactivity’s Jeff Burke, their first full band effort should have the punk underground swooning long past Valentine’s Day. The record is near flawless and easily repeatable. Best of 2020? Could be…
“Pressure Point,” the album’s first single is a great introduction, swarming in like bees on acid, the band let their guitars ring with tension and dive in as a rhythmic pulse frantically pushes forward. There’s an anxious exuberance to it, with jittery stops and starts, but it’s undeniably anthemic with howling vocals and quick and dirty solos that burst at an unnerving point. Played fast and loud, it rips, blending the best elements of bands like Oh Sees, Booji Boys, and The Buzzcocks, creating their own boiling power-pop tinged punk mayhem. “Pressure Point” goes off like an alarm, a quick blast to jostle you awake.