Noi!se - The Scars We Hide
GMM Records / Randale Records
In no-time Noi!se pretty much became one of my favorite streetpunk bands out there. The music, the lyrics and their attitude is what appeals to me ever since I heard “T...his Is Who We Are” (my introduction to the band) for the very first time. Needless to say how stoked I was that after several EP’s, splits, mini-albums and a compilation record I finally got my hands on the bands official full-length debut album “The Scars We Hide”.
Despite the band name Noi!se isn’t your typical ‘Oi! Oi!’ chanting streetpunk band. With every release the band seems to lean more and more to a punkrockish sound that could easily attract ‘non-streetpunk’ fans of bands like Off With Their Heads, early Bouncing Souls and to a lesser extent Face To Face. Does this mean Noi!se lost it’s ‘streetpunk cool’? Of course not, it just shows these guys keep on developing their sound and style, which is always a good thing, but they do it without turning their backs to their loyal fan base. Because if you loved pretty much anything the band has released prior to “The Scars We Hide” I can already tell you this album is an absolute must-have!
The twelve tracks that are on “The Scars We Hide” range somewhere between amazing and brilliant. Together with the new songs on their split 10” with the Street Dogs, that got released earlier this year, you can hear the band really evolved since “Rising Tide” which results from beginning to the end in an, almost, flawless debut album. I say almost because I don’t really like how the sentences in the verses of the song “Statistic” end with matching words that make it sound like a rather simple rhyme. Maybe I shouldn’t make such a point out of it, because the verses are companied by some of Noi!se’s fastest, hardcore influenced, work and the slowed down chorus with the trademark dual vocals between Matt and Nate is simply great. Okay, I convinced myself, I shouldn’t make such a big deal out of it!
It’s tough to pick out favorites on “The Scars We Hide”, but if I have to I would say “Rank And File”, “Glass Half Empty”, “Pawn In The Game”, “Plastic Friends” and “How We Made It Through”. I love how that last track breaks up around half of it and Matt sings “Suddenly I see the man that I become. The scars I hide inside remind me where I’m from. The debt I owe you all can never be repaid. All I have is a path to get better every day.”, it doesn’t get any better than this, although I thought that about songs such as “Idle Action” and “Rising Tide” as well when I heard those for the first time. So I sincerely hope Noi!se can surprise again on future things to come.
We had to wait a long time on “The Scars We Hide”, I think the album got announced for the very first time well over a year ago already, but it was definitely worth the wait! So don’t torture yourself by waiting any longer on buying this album, because as I wrote earlier this is an absolute must-have if you are into top of the league streetpunk!
