by Will Yarbrough (@willyarbrough15 / wyarbrough23@gmail.com)
Since forming in 2013 from the shards of his previous band Trapped Under Ice, Angel Du$t has not only evolved, but revolved around Justice Tripp.
In that sense, COLD 2 THE TOUCH — Angel Du$t's sixth album and first via Run For Cover — is no different. Big names galore guest on the mic. Unsurprisingly, the best performance goes to a hulked-out Scott Vogel, though Wes Eisold and his coolly detached beatnik poetry finish a close second. The guy who fronts Sex Pistols is also here, but the real star is the band's newish supporting cast. Hope Conspiracy shredder Jim Carroll and drummer Nick Lewis were already playing live alongside Tripp, as returning bassist Zecariah Ghosttribe and rhythm guitarist Steve Marino officially join the fold.
While unusual for Angel Du$t, continuity keeps the band attuned to Tripp's unpredictable wavelength. "DU$T" swirls amidst grainy studio ambience that's befitting of Jessica Pratt, though when the mood inevitably shifts, it comes not with the flip of a switch but by shooting out the lights. "I got a gun in my hand right now!,” Tripp announces with both shock and disgust, as if he's the one caught off guard by the pummeling D-beat. "I've become someone I said I wouldn't become."
Angel Du$t remain hard to pin down, but COLD 2 THE TOUCH is the purest distillation of their unmistakable essence. So many artists filter themselves so that each song will fit nicely onto its assigned algorithmic playlist. This album, much like yin and yang or perhaps an especially present Rick Rubin, reaches a higher plane of existence by allowing skate punk, bluesy rock 'n' roll, and sunbaked psychedelia to coexist within various strains of hardcore. Happily lost in a flow state, the band is guided not by force or even ingenuity but simply what feels good. Take two-step, crush it up with knee-scraped riffing, add a dash of doo-wop, then top it off with a guitar solo that would vindicate the dude at the show who still shouts "Freebird!" and voila; you have the title track, a relentless assault on dopamine sensors for all walks of life.
What's different and crucial about COLD 2 THE TOUCH is that Angel Du$t are bringing the pain again. Pop-rock — the band's preferred ear candy for too long — is replaced by a leaner, meaner binding agent. Reuniting with original producer Brian McTernan hasn't just turned the guitars back on but pushed them into the red. "I beat you like a drum,” Tripp relishes while stomping to a big, dumb, ugly groove that will never get old. But despite the spike in aggression, the album isn't senseless. If guilty of pushing people away, as Tripp confesses on bruiser "Nothing I Can't Kill," it's in pursuit of his calling. "Putting blood on a sound / Never water it down".
By turning up the heat, Angel Du$t set a high bar that no one can touch.