The A-side, “Easter Island” is a slow goth rocker with vocals just soaked in reverb. The track shifts from gentle to heavy while the vocalist does a damn good Peter Murphy impression. The B-side, “Chromosomatic” is a bit more rockin’, with more of a leaning towards Joy Division than Bauhaus. The poor recording quality does not give the songs credit and I think with some better production, Northern Liberties could crank out some pretty good stuff. This single was recorded on Easter Sunday, 2003, which is pretty neat. So is the clear orange vinyl.
Category: Reviews
Northern Liberties – Erode and Disappear (HardRockInfo.com)
18 songs in over an hour? But value for your money? First I thought that this record was a split, ‘cus it looked like that on the cover. But later I found out that it wasen’t a split at all….the band was NORTHERN LIBERTIES, and “Erode + Disappear” was actually the title. Funny, huh? This band is playing some kind of heavy Punk, that we can call Indie Punk to be more exact, and sometimes even Pop Punk actually. Some good songs, some bad songs, and it goes in through one ear and out of the other. The Pop Punk songs are their best stuff, the rest of it is just too boring. Maybe they should have done a Pop Punk EP instead? I would have liked that much better anyway.
Northern Liberties – Easter Island (HardRockInfo.com)
The first song, “Easter Island”, is a pretty o.k. Pop Punk song with a touch of Indie. A little heavy though.The second song, “Chromosomatic”, is a little faster Pop Punk song that I like better than the first one. Nice with the aggressive vocals that reminds me of NIRVANA.A nice vinyl single that you’ll survive without, no more no less. But if you got too much money, you should buy it just becuse of that.
Northern Liberties – Easter Island / Erode and Disappear (Scabz-n-bones)
Northern Liberties is a Great mix of Styles. They are Part of a Great Lineup over at Worldeater Records. Bass, Drums, Percusion, & Vocals, and that is it. Definitely makes for lots of Interesting Listening. Erode has 17 Songs, all of which will kick your Stereo’s Ass. The Easter Island 7 inch is 2 New Northern Liberties Songs recorded on Easter only Limited to 500 Copies and it’s on Gold Vinyl. Gotta Love Colored Vinyl. This Record will Wreck your Turntable as Well as Your Hearing. A Definite Winner.
Northern Liberties – Easter Island / Erode and Disappear (Aural Innovations)
Northern Liberties have several releases on the World Eater label, which is a non-profit label. All the CDs are $5 and 7″ records $3 including postage! This is the second release on the label and includes 18 tracks from 1-5 minutes in length. The band play a mixture of punk inspired rock. They remind me of some of the punk bands that I saw at the Gilman St. in Berkeley, California, when I went there nearly every Friday or Saturday night back in 1988-90.
Easter Island is the bands second release on World Eater. It was recorded on Easter Day 2003, thus the title. The band consists of a three piece (guitar, bass, drums). The lyrics are quite potent and the music heavy and distorted. The recording is quite low with the drums and bass mixed high and the guitars low. This is distorted rock with a punk attitude. Melodic at times, yet screaming raw all the time. Strange and intriguing stuff.
— Scott Heller
Northern Liberties – Erode and Disappear (daredevil.de)
Well this is my first experience with Northern Liberties and they did a damn good job of turning me upside down. This is a really cool record, that’s very hard to nail down into any particular genre or sound. It’s unique and not just for the sake of being different, its really good too. This honestly reminds me a bit of the Butthole Surfers (Independent Worm Saloon era), with its sometimes almost alt-punk/rock sounding tendencies but then the sound will shift into fluid bass groove and heavy percussion that is similar to Tool. You’d think they’d stop there, wrong! They change it up again and deliver some rock-influenced numbers that swagger along like Kyuss or Black Sabbath (“Dog Skies” can challenge any traditional stoner rock band in the groove department alone). I mean, no two songs sound the same here and Northern Liberties are damn good at balancing the different sounds, so I give them huge props in the variety department. A lot of bands would sound unfocused branching out so much, but not these guys. The vocals are pretty cool, with a raw feel to them and they range from spoken parts to intense shouts and they fit the mood and music really well. Nice packaging and production, round out the disc. I don’t know much about these guys, but I know that this album impressed the hell out of me. I’ll be reviewing some vinyl by these guys very soon, so in the meantime give this disc a listen, ’cause you won’t be disappointed! I think everyone from fans of post punk, grunge, classic rock and stoner rock will be able to enjoy this one!
— JS
Northern Liberties – Erode and Disappear (Splendid eZine)
I never knew geek-metal existed until I tripped over WorldEater Records and their stable of eyebrow-raising acts. While Northern Liberties appear to be on the high end of the label’s DIY spectrum (as opposed to say, Bitchslicer), I’m at a loss as to the depth of the audience for music that sounds like Motorhead dragged through an RPG game table (or a copy of Dianetics read while drunk, high and antisocial). But to their credit, Northern Liberties don’t deserve nearly as much shit as I’d give them if I were a dismissive bastard.
Sure, their singing is sophomorically bad and their harmonies are pointedly unharmonious, but it gives them a certain kind of charm. Yes, the lyrics are tantamount to bad sci-fi rambling and “make it up as you go along” belief systems, but it’s nice to see the unpolished side of geek chic. And I must say that the lads play their instruments well enough to not get booed offstage, and occasionally stumble across a serendipitous riff. When push comes to shove, they fall back on the double-time rant and wail approach, buoyed by flat drumming and droning guitars that sound like they could use a complete restringing — but somehow, for all their flaws, they actually pull it together enough for me to say, “If you like this kind of brutal suburban basement navel-gazing, Erode + Disappear would actually be a good listen.” For the rest of us, I’m not so sure…but hey, everyone needs an outlet.
— Justin Kownacki
Northern Liberties – Easter Island (Splendid eZine)
It’s hard not to think of noodly late-eighties indie rock when listening to Northern Liberties — but on this particular 7″, the band makes a notable change to the unofficial indie rock credo, completely dropping the guitar from both of these tracks. The result is a rhythm-heavy trio that cross-breeds DC hardcore with Touch & Go faves like GVSB and The Jesus Lizard.
“Easter Island” has a tense start, with strummed bass chords and fiery percussion that eventually give way to a droning rhythm and reverb-drenched vox. Listening to “Easter Island” is like dropping in and out of a cough syrup-induced sleepiness: you may do your best to remain conscious through the hypnotic whirr, but you’ll only be resuscitated for a brief taste of reality when the cavernous howling vocals break across the beats. There’s even a false ending here, full of tinkling percussion that simply isn’t necessary.
Skittish drum beats and a simplistic bass line begin “Chromosomatic”; the four-string alternates between pulsing low-end and trebly chorus-complementing phrases. Vocalist Justin may be on the flat side, but he gives it all he’s got, letting loose a controlled eruption of gasps, shrieks and slurred phrases that command your attention. It’s melodic without ever resorting to rehashed pop ideas. The cryptic lyrics still leave me wondering what the hell the tune’s about, but the music is so intoxicating that you’ll soon be jamming along, regardless of the deeper meaning. The more I listen, the more I like it.
I’m not sure how well an entire rhythm-heavy CD of these sorts of songs would fare, but this brief introduction is intriguing. Sick of guitar? Try Northern Liberties’ take on indie rock and see what this trio can accomplish without the evils of six-string slinging.
— Andrew Magilow
Northern Liberties – Easter Island (Heart Attack #41)
2 tracks. Low – fi and gothy, the first track scared me. It sounded like a hillbilly version of Love And Rockets, dressed up as vampires, hunting down little kids. The song on side B has a more forward rock feel, but there’s still too much reverb on the vocals and the recording overall is pretty abysmal. I guess this is cool, if you like to chase bats with your truck.
— Marianne Hofstetter :: Heartattack # 41
Northern Liberties – Easter Island (daredevil.de)
Northern Liberties recently blew me away with their “Erode and Disappear” album and I’m really glad to finally be reviewing this one. This 7″ continues the sound they were going for on the full-length which was a mix of heavy riff-rock, alt/punk and Butthole Surfers style weirdness. On this release you get two new songs that are all out ass kickers. Once again they deliver powerful songs without a guitar anywhere in sight. I’ve actually heard a few people say negative things about these guys because there isn’t any guitar in the band but don’t listen to any of that, because these guys are tight musicians and manage to create a full sound with only bass, drums and vocals. The bass playing on this 7″ is truly unique delivering fluid, powerful riffs that are catchy and deep giving the sound a heavy, rhythmic backbone. Side A features the epic track, “Easter Island” which switches from quiet moments to thundering, riff driven assaults with those sung/shouted/spoken vocals right up front. Side B contains “Chromosomatic” which is drastically different from “Easter Island”. This song is a mix between dirty rock and roll and catchy alt/punk sounds and it’s areal rocker for certain. All in all, this is another fine release by Northern Liberties that makes me excited to see what they come up with next. If you dug the full-length, then definitely give this 7″ a listen. These guys are a truly unique band that deserve more attention, so check them out damn it!
— JS