Die! Die! Die!’s second album, Promises, Promises, has all the characteristics of a postpunk revival. The New Zealand-based trio attacks with the highbrow snottiness of Wire’s Pink Flag, while brooding with the moroseness of Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures.
On “A.T.T.I.T.U.D.,” singer Andrew Wilson shrieks the peculiarly spelled title as an introduction to a sinister bassline. The title track builds slowlyfrom an echoing guitar, but soon explodes into a three-note punk rock maelstrom. With “Whitehorses,” the group slows for a moody ballad that retains their edge, yet sets it against the prettiest, most melancholy melody on the album. The majority of the songs on Promises, Promises end before they wear out their welcome, which may be the band’s secret to keeping theirabrasive sound fresh.
-Jeff Terich
Die! Die! Die!: www.diediedie.net
Strictly Amateur Films: www.safrecords.com