Bridge and Tunnel / Young Livers

Split Record [7 inch] (2008)

Keenan

After both of these bands released excellent debut albums, the prospect of a split seemed ideal. Though their styles are rather antithetical (as evidenced by the songs on this split), I'm sure they share more than a few fans. Each band has one song each here, Bridge and Tunnel on the a-side and Young Livers on the b-side.

The Bridge and Tunnel song could easily have been an outtake of their much-lauded East/West. "The Flea Marketers" has the kind of math-influenced, seemingly off-hand guitar work that infested their debut full-length. The song perfectly exemplifies the vocal chemistry that they exude. The song starts off with somber guitars, and soon the vocals join in. The vocals increase in intensity momentarily, as if to foreshadow the upcoming aggressiveness of the first verse. The chorus weaves in between vocalists, as they scream along. The female vocals are kept to a minimum on the song, which is a shame as they could add so much. However, for a song that goes over four minutes, it goes by pretty fast.

The only real problem that I had with Young Livers' eight-song debut was that it was too short. Their song, "Finger to the Pulse" has a different feel to it. The gruff vocals are still there but they are presented way more melodically in the chorus. After the piquant intro, which will manifest itself in your brain for quite some time, the power chords kick in to start the adrenaline. The verse has more of a Rocket from the Crypt feel rather than the Drive Like Jehu feel the debut had. The chorus trades off the power chords for some more interesting single string noodling. The effect is actually pretty satisfying. The song shows more experimentation with style, as the bass is heavy and even comes to the forefront during one part of the song. This is probably my favorite song that they have done so far, and definitely my favorite on this split. I really hope that this is the type of material they will bring to the table on their next full-length.

Though Bridge and Tunnel came through with another excellent song, the Young Livers song took me by surprise and captivated me. Both songs are awesome, though, and the split is just three dollars. Buy it.

MYSPACEs:
Bridge and Tunnel
Young Livers