by Zach Zollo (@zach_zollo)
What exactly are they armed with? It’s a fair question to ask of Detroit hardcore group The Armed, now on their third LP with the release of ULTRAPOP. Until this promotional cycle, the most obvious answer was anonymity: few members of the group were identified to the public, creating a mystique that brought central focus to the music. With themselves out of the limelight, the group was able to engage in a brilliant shade of pranksterism. Whether it was getting Converge’s Ben Koller to record drums by telling him they would be paired with bass from Metallica’s Robert Trujillo (they were not), or unearthing an old Frank Turner session to sample without permission on the aptly titled “FT. FRANK TURNER,” the Armed’s attitude displayed a band of insurgents ready to cause a disruption, while not forgetting to enjoy themselves.
The pieces of the group’s now-public lineup range in experience, aesthetic and role, but all come equipped as an intimidating instrumental arsenal. The relentless rhythm section brings forth a throttling hyper-aggression rooted in the extremities of noise and metal. Their hooks radiate with elysian melody, angelic and ethereal in the ways of dream pop and neo-psychedelia. Most noticeable is their use of gilded distortion, glitzed-out and suffocating to where it washes over you in a satisfyingly sensory overload. All these forces unleash a cannonade that isn’t so much “all gas, no brakes” as it is “all napalm, no halons.”
While these characteristics are found throughout their work, ULTRAPOP employs them in a more concrete mission statement: reach the maximal sonic conclusions at the four corners of pop, noise, hardcore and metal. It’s a task the band is prepared for, and one they accomplish, resulting in their best work yet. Truthfully, it may be difficult to appreciate ULTRAPOP if listened to from an inadequate audio source, whether that be a laptop or old stereo. Don’t let dusty speakers dissuade you: this record is an achievement in recognizing the contemporary sounds of the underground, challenging yourself to incorporate and innovate them, and presenting an unparalleled offering that endearingly raises the bar for competitors.
The album opens sublimely with the title track, a prelude with the sheen of a Krispy Kreme. Featuring a soaring, longing melody shrouded in glitchy haze, the song seems to channel The Terror-era Flaming Lips, or even M83 circa Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming. These influences feel welcome, in line with an aesthetic that allows for harsh noise and dulcet tones to coexist gracefully. With beauty being equal to the beast in their equation, the band establishes an ethos of effectual songwriting early in the runtime. No oxygen is wasted as the listener is thrown into the next track “All Futures,” where they’re shocked into the rumbling groove and wailing riffs. The saccharine synths (or maybe effect-fried riffs) gleefully intertwine with the screeched “Yah yah yah yahs” and bellowed lyrics of “all futures/destruction!!” of the hook.
The next two tracks, “Masunaga Vapors'' and “A Life So Wonderful,” further the brutish displays of riffs, blast beats and energy infused with a fun-loving spirit. While at times bordering on intonation, the structures of these songs revel in the repetition of earworm riffs. They reinforce the POP in ULTRAPOP by being immediate, while continuing to balance the challenging and the familiar. On the topic of pop, “An Iteration” and “Average Death” were singles for a reason. “An Iteration” commands attention with its dynamic shifts, and gives us a guitar solo that’s like the Rapture on creatine. With oldsoul’s Jess Hall in the mix, the vocals are anthemic and impassioned, resulting in one of the LP’s best hooks. “Average Death” may bring a milder energy than other tracks, but still plays as an anachronistic album highlight, with an intriguing fusion of Touche Amore tinged hardcore and a Deftones' styled hook.
It would be remiss to ignore how central the production is to how ULTRAPOP sounds. The legendary Kurt Ballou is once again behind the boards for the group, this time co-producing with member Dan Greene to help the band more accurately articulate what they’ve set out to do. Ballou and Greene, along with Ben Chisolm, work diligently to make sure the group’s grime is presented as a pristine package. The mixes attack on first listen, but gradually wash away to reveal the sweetness shrouded in the savagery. One can only imagine what pedals were used in the God City Studio to conjure this auditory assault, for the manna of gearhead Valhalla is not administered to the unworthy. Whatever they’ve used to make a strum sizzle or riff rampage, songs like “Faith In Medication” and “Real Folk Blues” are all the more intoxicating for it.
It also would be remiss to ignore how “Big Shell,” a song snuggled in the middle of the album, features what may be the most bloodthirsty breakdown since the shutdown. Cara Drolshagen’s vocals open the track with shrieking authority, propelling the listener into the pit to get pulped. The bass is what strikes hardest, however, bludgeoning the listener before they get a chance to dive bomb off-stage and fracture their tibia. It feels as though The Armed noticed what the buzz-worthy Gulch have been up to, responding with a track that’s up to the challenge of topping what they produce. Once again, the band’s attitude makes you take notice, but in a way that should be embraced. It encourages growth for contemporaries through friendly competition, the kind that motivates you to keep getting better.
Through its twelve tracks and thirty nine minutes, ULTRAPOP offers nothing more than the absolute best. It’s a fantastic, futuristic, and forward-thinking emulsion of “what we know pop to be” and “what pop can be” from the heavy side of the aisle. It’s simultaneously grandiose, gruesome and glamorous while never evoking notions of elitism. Above all, it solidifies The Armed as one of hardcore’s current heavies by showcasing something all groups strive to have: a fully realized vision, brought to life with the best, by the best.