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The Horns of Hattin Templars |
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Templars… well they don't sound like your average Punk band… nor would I classify them as solely Punk… they're a little too smooth for that. But it's there. The Templars didn't take the fast road to get where they are today… in fact "where they are" could just about mean anyplace on earth you can think of, yet only recently did they do their first gig in England. Ironically, they sound about as English as you can get without actually being from there… they're New York-based but they're slant is definitely in the old school Brixton tradition, and the sound falls in anywhere amongst The Damned, The Buzzcocks and even The Who. Featuring a smooth and easy style, they've make more of an art out of three-chord proficiency than anyone since maybe The Ramones, and the songs are catchy, concise, and sound like they were first developed clear back in 1983, yet "Horns of Hattin" is quite new… and so we may say theirs is a throwback sound, even considering their grand entrance didn't occur till 1990, so for eleven years and a boatload of offshoot recordings later, it's hard to imagine they've changed much. While the battle dirge of "Video Age" offers a brief welcoming into someone thematic portrayal featuring stellar cover art right out of the pages of medieval war stories, later on we discover the true nature of their "Oi" surroundings arrives in tact and undeterred-"Nowhere to Play," "Consequences," and the acoustical folk character of "Enemies" which picks up the pace in a Stiff Little Fingers/Chaos U.K. gentlemanly manner. Templars offer up that extra ounce of flavor to the usually dry Punk formula, and their subdued yet naturalist style serves to exemplify the rootsier side of music which over the wall anarchists might find difficult to swallow at times while for the rest, a tasteful elixir that should be easy enough to stomach. Released by GMM Records Review by Vinnie Apicella
[va85@columbia.edu] |