[rating=3.00]
New York City’s Pistola thrives in the late 90’s post-hardcore realm, don’t tell them it is almost 2009 and all the kids are using Garage Band as a short cut; they don’t want to hear it. They are content in playing in the same vein as Quicksand, Unsane and Helmet and have consistently done so on their new release The Bleeder. Full of scratchy guitars and stop-start drumming Pistola plays this genre by the numbers, but tosses a curveball at the listener with the singing. Vocalist Patricia Gradin dominates the album with her voice, going for a female Robert Plant impersonation, rising and climbing to crescendos in every song. This formula does become repetitive over 50 minutes, but the successes like “Be Patient” and the pop tinged “Chugs and Squeals” reward. In “Out and About with Danny Rowe”, Pistola rips on the music industry and bands wearing makeup on stage, if you agree and want to revisit a stripped down time in hard rock, check out The Bleeder.
