Dirty Larry
Warbox

New Jersey seems to breed hard-hitting bands, ridden with intense rock and horns to boot, and Dirty Larry is at the head of the pack. With Dirty Larry’s 2004 release, Inception, the band took ska, punk, rock, hardcore, and everything else imaginable and threw it all together for 10 tracks of well-written, yet unperfected music. With higher recording quality, a more concentrated and refined style, and the same energy that Dirty Larry has had from day one, their newest release has put the band on a path to success. Warbox, set to be released April 30, 2006, is definitely for you ska fans out there who dabble in pop-punk, post-hardcore, emo, and whatever other genres kids make up these days. While Dirty Larry plays music in the vein of Monty and The Specs, it’s always been part of their repertoire; they’ve just chosen a future for the band with a formula that works. In the words of Bob, the band’s trombone player and one of their vocalists, “I'll let you know up front, there is not a single ska tune on this EP.”

The EP kicks off with its namesake track, “Warbox.” Starting with a laidback groove of bass, drums, and a nice guitar line, the track soon explodes into a 7/8 groove with strong percussion, ripping guitar lines, and edgy vocals. The transition to the punk-paced choruses with strong horn accompaniment is magnificent and harsher vocal touches just makes it more intense. I love the use of double-bass pedal all over the track, highlighting some of the guitar lines and doing so extremely precisely. Just because the band’s new sound is extremely rock-influenced, it doesn’t mean their horns can’t light it up. A breakdown with a lead horn line is really precise, but might be mixed a little too much in favor of the sax, something that’s consistently done throughout the EP. This is really an awesome kickoff track, intensifying in the last minute to leave a really strong impression. “These Black Lines” was the first track I had heard off this release, and I was instantly hooked. The verses of this tune serve to verify my previous comments on the excellent double bass and use of nicely-placed guitar lines, and the choruses show off more horn accents and awesome vocal harmonies. With such a high energy level throughout the track, this is probably the apex of the release vocally and instrumentally. The complexity of guitar, bass, and drum parts at about the 2:50 mark makes your jaw drop, and is something to be admired by any musician.

“Leading But Misled” starts off in 5/8 but quickly settles in a high-energy punk verse that spills into the choruses, featuring even more vocal excellence. During a breakdown after the first chorus, it feels like the track loses its edge, being confined to bass and drums with very highly mixed vocals that seem too articulated and almost unnatural. The track picks up intensity once again, and soon finds the chorus that really serves as a form of redemption in energy. The closest thing you’re gonna find to ska on this EP shows up in this tune, with distorted upstrokes during a buildup to a nicely harmonized vocal part and a final chorus. “Moral Judgment Interview” begins with a horn and picked guitar intro that shows of the high trombone range and awesome balance and blend within the horn section. A strong bass solo leads into another one of Dirty Larry’s patented punk verses, followed by a strong chorus with horn accompaniment. There’s something about the vocals in this chorus that are again a little too articulate, which sacrifices drive for tonal accuracy – something I don’t think you’d see in their live show. What’s really apparent throughout this disc is that their tightness of rhythm and horn sections isn’t just a fluke, or a one-track phenomenon. The percussion, bass, and two guitars provide a consistently solid foundation for the band to build on. The last track, “Children’s Crusade,” has a ton of well-written guitar parts in the intro, but for the first time there are some slightly audible mistakes. Although I can’t say that I would even attempt some of these riffs, it was just a little surprising on a disc that’s so musically perfect. Staying high in energy and featuring catchy chorus lyrics, this is a really awesome finale track for Warbox.

Overall, I think Dirty Larry has done really well for themselves with their new EP, Warbox. Concentrating their energy into a refined style of music that’s all their own, they’re bound to make waves in tons of circles when it’s released shortly. I advise anyone to head over to their MySpace to see what the future of Dirty Larry sounds like, and to do so with an open mind.

Reviewed By:  Todd Springer

Date:  Sat 2 Sep 06

Score:  8.0

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