The Keep Aways

The Keep Aways (2005)

Jordan Rogowski

A lot of people, myself included a fair share of times, tend to discredit women who sing for punk bands. Many times, they just don't have the necessary tools to be a force as the lead singer for a punk band. It's not that they're incapable, but the good ones are just seemingly few and far between. I'm sure, however, the Keep Aways would have something to say about my preconceived notions.

In just seven high-charged songs, the Keep Aways establish their brand of punk rock as one to be reckoned with. It seems sort of strange, though. The lead singer of the Keep Aways can probably be pinned closest to Distillers singer Brody Dalle, whom I cannot stand, yet I find the singer of the Keep Aways to be pretty enjoyable, and if nothing else, her razor wire vocals fit perfectly to the gritty punk rock in the background. It's a fairly simple formula; I'm sure you've heard it before. Full on, aggressive guitar assault, pounding drums, and raw, gritty vocals over it all. There's a solid differentiation with the album's pacing, even just in the construction of some individual songs. Tempos aside, the lack of diversity to be found elsewhere is not so much as existent.

Tracks one through seven are essentially the same verse, chorus, verse structure with relatively little change to go on. You can easily tell when one song ends and the next begins, but the distorted chord progressions offer little to get excited about. The pace is fast and the overall sound intense, but there's not a lot to keep coming back to.

Fans of loud, fast punk rock with female vocals will, I'm sure, find things to like. It's a bit too repetitive and a bit too bare, but for a listen or two, the EP serves its purpose.