Review: Power – Heavy Muscle

Power
Heavy Muscle

Twelve Gauge Records
Street: 07.10
Power = Bl’ast + Blacklisted + Cold World

Movie quotes—why aren’t bands using them more these days? Power didn’t get the memo, and this included them (and TV quotes, to be precise) throughout Heavy Muscle, which takes a decent album to “check it out.” Quotes contextualize a band’s music, show appreciation for the source, and through re-appropriation, simultaneously rebel against what we’re sold. It’s decidedly punk if you think about it. Seinfeld’s Kramer kicks off “L.O.S. (Loss of Spite)” with “Here’s to feeling good all the time,” creating the perfect juxtaposition in a song clearly not about feeling good at all. Similarly, a quote from Keith David’s They Live character states, “The whole deal is like some crazy game … The name of the game is make it through life,” which works singularly but also deepens the meaning, if you’re familiar with They Live’s premise. With biting lyrics, a slightly swinged-out groove, and the inclusion of these quotes, Heavy Muscle nails it. –Peter Fryer