Nomos - Notes From The Acheron [One-Sided 12"]

Artist: Nomos
Album: Notes From The Acheron
Release: 2010
Label: Deranged

Tracklist:

1. A Witness
2. Changeling
3. O Fortuna
4. Mendicant
5. Pharmakon
6. The Fall
7. Vertical Slum (Swell Maps)

The Brooklyn tardy boys of Nomos gained some attention from their 2009 demo, which eventually received vinyl treatment in the form of a 7" on Deranged. To be honest, I wasn't really blown away by that set of songs. Half of it was pretty great, while half of it was just decent and unremarkable. Overall, though, I would consider it a solid demo. However, since recording that set of songs, the band has added a second, sometimes-mustachioed guitarist and a new, blonde bassist, which has not only beefed-up their sound, but drastically improved their (still) drunken live shows.

Due to a large number of contributing factors including, but not limited to, a slothful pace of songwriting, a vocalist too good for practices, trouble with mixing, Canadian customs officials, and record plant screw-ups, it's taken forever for the band to get this record out. Still, it's well worth the wait. Notes From The Acheron is a one-sided 12", so what we get is a fluid, eight-minute set of six Nomos originals and a "hidden" Swell Maps cover.

From the opening notes of "A Witness," one will realize that this is a darker record than the demo. One will also notice that the band's early 90s hardcore influence of Infest and Citizens arrest is now complimented by parts inspired by crustier bands like Framtid. After a show they played with Brain Killer, a pleased fan noted "I thought they would be a Nike band, but they were a Vans band!" Not only do the originals flow together extremely well, but each song appears to be an improvement on its predecessor, culminating with "Pharmakon" and "The Fall," the band's two finest songs. The former has some of the coolest guitar flourishes the band has come up with thus far and ends with the sickest mosh part and masochistic grovelling combination, while the latter is one of their more complex songs and is a perfect ending to this record.

After your digital catharsis, lift your digital needle up and onto the digital secret groove to hear the band's take on Swell Maps' "Vertical Slums." Nomos has had a knack of covering not only hardcore staples, but post-punk songs, as well. Covering Wire hasn't gotten the crowd moving in the same way as Madball, but it's certainly welcome, especially in recorded form. This cover is very well executed and is a refreshing ending to the whole affair, which can be a bit dreary, otherwise.

To go on a brief tangent, I would like to just say that NYC punk is also finally killing it again, what with other bands like Pollution, Crazy Spirit, Perdition, Dawn Of Humans, Long Pigs, The Men, Natural Law, Twin Stumps, Night Birds (half Brooklyn!), and countless others, both newer and older. With Notes From The Acheron, Nomos has capitalized on the promise of their demo and have churned out a solid hardcore record. It's by no means earth-shattering, but it's still a blast and is one of the many interesting records coming out of Brooklyn at this time and they are definitely to be counted among the list above. Anyway, be sure to pick this up from Deranged (who have been killing it lately!), see the band live (if you can), and keep an eye out for when we post more of these exciting bands doing things in NYC!

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-Adam