The Death Set reviewed
The Death Set
Worldwide
(Counter)
If the Violent Femmes, Buzzcocks, and Faith No More have to meet somewhere, might as well be on Worldwide.
Appearing: Friday, April 18th at Empty Bottle in Chicago.
It’s not a musical thing, of course (the aforementioned references or the album itself). The Femmes, ‘Cocks, and FNM find themselves at the mercy of this review because they all wrote songs about the act of, um, self-evaluation, casting it in the unkindest of lights and underscoring its shame while laboring the downsides.
It all reminds me of a story of a friend of mine who caught a ride to visit me at school with a driver prone to uncomfortable discussions. The thesis for this particular three-hour journey was that ejaculation and the moments leading up to it were actually fraught with pain and the euphoria of orgasm was a giant “thank you” from nerve endings, a prize for taking away the hurt. (At least that’s how I remember it; the drive was recapped with a delirious exasperation.)
The Death Set are compulsive musical masturbators and Worldwide is a clenched-faced, chafing trial brought on by cheap instruments being pushed past their limits in 90-second bursts. To their credit, there are melodies (check out a Strokes — coincidence? — influence on “Negative Thinking”) and the Baltimore-based duo don’t come close to the sirocco of extreme metal. But check them for hairy palms and a delicate stride.
— Steve Forstneger
Click here to download “Negative Thinking.”
