Unsacred Hearts

Unsacred Hearts (2004)

Adam White

The material on the Unsacred Hearts' debut EP follows the time honoured tradition of rock songs about rock. That always comes with the potential of sounding silly (we all have nightmares about bad hair metal where the main subject was "RAWK!") but as this is a fairly charming and skilled band their subject matter is delivered with a good deal of reverence and conviction.

The band shows off a number of influences over these 7 songs. At the core this has the feel of early New York City punk rock, but the band dips into moments of folk, blues and soul, 60s mod and even a bit of outlaw country before the record's run it's course. "Stuck Inside A Mobile Home With The Mansion Blues Again" is an infectious amalgam of post-punk dissonance, garage rock and folky storytelling. It sounds fresh and original yet it's deeply rooted in the band's influences. The song's about an old busker claiming that Dylan's "Love Minus Zero/No Limit" is the only Dylan song in which the title doesn't appear in the lyrics (it's not). Weird subject matter for a rock song? Sure, but the Unsacred Hearts make it sound damn important nonetheless. "1978" is a tribute to the NYC punk scene of that year, one that the band admits they were "born too late" to witness. They wax nostalgic for the time of Johnny Thunders and berate the current trends in punk rock (the line "I don't want your diary stuck in a fucking song" makes me smile). "We Were A Band" is another high point, showing off well integrated country influences in a tune that you'll be singing for hours afterwards.

I'm really excited about this band; there's less than 15 minutes of material on this disc yet I could easily keep talking about it. The lead track "I Was Raised To Be Polite & Kind" is barely a minute and a half long and it ends with a guitar solo that feels classic for lack of a better term. It's the ultimate tease and leaves you in such anticipation for what's to come. The same can be said about this EP.

Unsacred Hearts - Stuck Inside A Mobile Home With The Mansion Blues Again
Unsacred Hearts – Plug Me In