Mesh

Mesh [EP] (2021)

John Gentile

Poppy paranoia might be the tag for Mesh. The band includes Sims Hardin of futuro-garage punkers Dark Web and this new band continues to that band’s negative vision vibe on their debut EP. Of course, there’s a certain black humor involved in these tales of distress. The lyrics to “CIA Mind Control” read less like a warning and more like a bleak lamentation about how you might be in control of the things you think you are in control of. But whereas, say, Conflict, would drop deeper into despair, Mesh, much like Dark Web, make a certain light of the situation and revel in the destruction that is the modern world. To wit, even though the lyrics are heavy, the track is an upbeat power=pop-punk track that falls somewhere between the Adverts and the Bay City Rollers. That is, the tracks storms forward with a certain clean slicing, but the lyrics sound like high school bobbysoxer calling a friend on the phone.

Things get even more interesting from there. While the band could rest on this concept – dread cloaked by a smiling face – and no one would blame them for doing so, they wisely push it to the next level. While “Traveler” again has the high energy pulse of most of the tracks here, a ghostly wail and clanging guitar effects are dropped over the top- they avoid falling pray to camp and instead give their plastic delivery an insidious shroud. It’s not easy to sound and evil and spooky with high energy, fun sound music, but thanks in part to the wry lyrics and robo-vocals, this release is fun and frightening.