Bent U.S.A. have variously been described as The sickest band in the UK (Jo Kendall, Kerrang!) and The bastard son of Marilyn Manson! (An anonymous Net-head). The real Bent U.S.A. fall somewhere in-between the social polemic of PiL, the pseudo rock swagger of INXS and the sardonic guitar fury of Ministry, all of which combine to mentally debilitating effect. The product of a lifetime kicking against the system, the genesis of Bent U.S.A. occurred in 2000. Their first official release, As You Like, paints a disturbing portrait of post-Millennial Britain - a lack of faith in our crumbling Judicial system, disgust at our betrayal by those in whom we place trust, the moral decimation caused by the effects of drug addiction - Bent U.S.A. catalogue these events and reflect them back upon a society too desensitised and too arrogant to see its own corruption. Behind the powerful and beautifully evocative cover by German photographer and moviemaker Leni Riefenstahl, As You Like burns with portentous tales of rape, compulsion and loss staple ingredients that continually fuel the tabloid obsession with the darker side of life. But Bent U.S.A. dont just preach Armageddon, they are Armageddon, their hyper-kinetic live shows (including notorious gigs with The Icarus Line and Warrior Soul's Kory Clarke) have seen the band barred from numerous venues by promoters who fear the bands extreme lyrical content and violent physical intensity.
Following label interest in the band from giants such as Universal, Roadrunner and Maverick, Armalyte Industries are proud to allow Bent U.S.A. the opportunity to present their musical vision in the uncensored form in which it was originally intended. Dangerous, provocative, incendiary and never less than totally uncompromising, Bent U.S.A. are coming to tear morality apart.
some stuff the press said
Bent U.S.A. - 'As You Like' "What a real shit kicking stomper of a debut this is. Kryptonite guitars in a head on collision with the seediest Superman on the planet. Perry Farrell meets Lux Interior for a heads down, no nonsense arsequake. 'Parody' was reviewed in PFM 1 but it's so good we can reiterate the point here. GO AND BUY THIS!! 'Rape Team Machine' surely influenced by the Nicholas Cage movie 8mm is a quite terrifying, but laudable, tirade against the scum that rape. I t's a cracking track and in common with all the Bent U.S.A. material is fantastically produced and mixed. The guitars and vocals in particular leap out of the speakers and with this band it's very disconcerting. 'Daddy' is another song that deals with "tricky" subjects and the way Paul emotes the songs gives a real sense of outrage and exorcism of personal demons coming across. The band have a sort of grainy technoir filmic quality to their material and the samples, all well chosen, add to rather than detract from this. 'It's Over Man' is another great song and the quality of the material here is kept at 10 throughout the album. A more dancey feel introduces the track 'Separation' and the vocals on this are really quim quivering good. "Why did you leave me?" asks a female voice before the chorus is rammed into you with such insistent force that you will find yourself singing it for days. Johnny Rotten makes an appearance with his famous "Ah ha ha! Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?" quote, and the answer here is a definite no. 'Come Down Day' is another Bent classic that you'll be singing as you go about your daily work, be you postman or serial killer. The rest of this mini album is made up of remixes which do what remixes do, taking up the space where more songs would have been welcome. All in all a great effort from a great band. 5/5" Pity For Monsters Zine
"'Parody' - is a gorgeous mixture of bouncing dance beats and sleazy caustic guitar riffs. A full on fistfight. Somewhere between EMF and Ministry. A very very good track that gets this album off on a good foot; up beat and full of energy! 'Rape Team Machine' - like 'Parody' has its own pulsating beats with added samples and guitar riffs that even Rob Zombie would take a bow to. Bent U.S.A really has these tracks finely tuned and tight, they really are Romper Stompers and even their track (It's Over Man) has the laid back similarities of The Young Gods. A blistering mixture of guitar riffs and mind blowing electronic hypnotism! 'Overman - Terminated! (Residual Evil Remix by Needleye)' - an overall electronic and bombastic guitar driven onslaught. Rough as a badger's arse (but cool) and even comes across similar to the experimentation of 'Psychic T.V.' 'Love Fades, Pain Lasts (Boys Don't Cry Remix)' - is a great trance-like track, classic beats with a beautiful melody twisting and turning throughout this track, that puts any hard floor material in the shadows. Sorry to pigeonhole you guys, but a fucking peach of an album! Raw energy power; delivered, signed and sealed! If you like White Zombie, KMFDM, Ministry and hard floor trance, add Bent U.S.A to that list, they have the strength and diversity of Bill Leeb and Rhys Fullber, Industrial metal to tantric trance. Take a bow guys - fucking genius! 4/4" - Hard Wired Webzine
"Its refreshing to hear bands take a jab at the industrial genre without tiredly ripping off NIN, and London quartet Bent U.S.A., who are apparently dogged by a reputation for trashing venues and going apeshit onstage, sound nothing like Mr Self Destruct and co. Overtly political, confrontational and often just plain evil, this debuts credible marriage of pounding beats, gnarled riffs and anger-fuelled, but often melodic vocals, call to mind Johnny Rottens post-Sex Pistols outfit PiL, and a gruffer EMF, making Bent U.S.A. worthy contenders for nastiest industrial band currently operating out of the UK." - 3/5 Kerrang!
"With more than a nod between Nine Inch Nails, Sulpher, Sheep On Drugs, Utah Saints and The Prodigy, Bent USA push out some slick industrial rock. Nothing too adventurous but fully competent none the less. Yeah, it's got the driving beat, forceful guitars, the all important distorto vocal effect, electro breakdowns and syth squidges and sweeps but ultimately it's not a million miles away from the bands that influence them. Take track four, 'It's Over, Man' for example, it has the bass line from The Young Gods' 'Skin Flower' running through it, nothing like showing your influences so blatantly. That's not to say this is a bad album, far from it; it's very well produced, the songs are well written dance floor fillers that will have cybergoths the length and breadth of the country bopping, and that is essentially what this is aiming at. Good time friday nights out where you can dress up and forget your shit job for a few hours.7/10" - Terrorizer
More details and pics to come....... Watch this space.
I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V3.6!
|
