by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
It’s strange but there are times when 2019 feels like it was ten years ago. Way back in October 2019, Boston trio Black Beach released their sophomore album, Tapeworm, a record that has since grown to be a true favorite here at Post-Trash. That album featured a murky and distorted blend of post-punk, post-hardcore, and maybe a touch of noise rock that sat somewhere between the extended dissonance of Drive Like Jehu and the sun burnt garage punk of Oh Sees. These references aside, the band have taken influence from 80s industrial, dub, film scores, and free jazz to create their upcoming EP, Giallo, due out October 25th. Their sound feels uniquely inspired, with a special kind of sonic violence.
“Traffic Jam” is the first single taken from the upcoming release, with one of the most colossal bass riffs we’ve heard in a while. The tonality is 100% noise rock, heavy as a ton of bricks, and it’s clear that Black Beach aren’t fucking around. There’s an eerie tape loop going in the background and a menacing coldness in the vocals that recalls both The Fall and more modernly, Stuck. The rhythm pounds at the core of the song but the abrasive low end dissipates on occasion to reveal fractured synths before the entire thing comes triumphantly unglued.