“Heaven Or Not” is a standout as the band goes full bore into ballad mode, replete with chiming guitars and thick wall of analog synth seemingly teleported from the pivotal scene of an alternate reality John Hughes coming-of-age drama. It’s this intentionally crafted and meticulously maintained emotional buffer zone that makes White Reaper’s songwriting so compellingly enigmatic. These are stories that embrace universal emotions but are constructed in a manner that cleverly sequesters true narratives behind deeply personal meanings and situations that run parallel to one’s own but never intersect. White Reaper’s trademark complex lyricism is in fine form, weaving heady tales of youth and young manhood with compelling instrumentals into blue-collar poetic expression that remains just outside blanket generality. A perfect example of the the band’s past and present coexisting, and perhaps even a glimpse into a possible future. “Pink Slip” may not be White Reaper’s best track but it’s absolutely no slouch, either. “Pink Slip” takes this one step further, rolling in new concepts including semi-rapped vocals alongside cinematic keys and huge riffs with a tacit acknowledgement of potentially dubious late-blooming innovations on the hook, “hard to believe us when we grow up so slow”. Perhaps the most traditionally ‘White Reaper’ track on the album, “Fog Machine” sits neatly beside the band’s earlier hits “Sheila” and “Judy French” as an addictively energetic rock n roll track packed to the bursting with explosive guitar heroics and a sing-along hook big enough to reel in even the most jaded listeners. This trend continues throughout the album even as the band simmers down closer to their usual comfort zone, but this opening salvo serves to redefine White Reaper without completely abandoning their power-pop roots. White Reaper’s reverence for classic, heavier sounds crops up throughout the album, injected with soaring, anthemic vocals on “Bozo” and even dipping a toe into spaghetti western Thin Lizzy worship on the widescreen hardcore western, “Funny Farm.” The effect can be a little jarring, especially considering the fact that White Reaper has long played the role of good-time party boys, but with the meteoric rise of hardcore-lite acts such as Turnstile it makes good sense for White Reaper to experiment with harder sounds as the band’s writing always espoused heavier themes and darker shades beneath the brilliantly upbeat instrumentation. It’s a head-on collision between Black Flag and Black Sabbath, topped off with a colossal breakdown guaranteed to whip any crowd into a seething mosh of uninhibited humanity. “Asking For A Ride” launches forward at a breakneck, punk rock cadence powered by muscular, classic heavy metal riffs. The one-two punch of the title track and follow-up, “Bozo,” effectively sandblasts the pop-rock sheen clean off while maintaining their hooky, sing-along sensibilities. Asking For A Ride has White Reaper taking measured chances with their sound, expanding into new styles while retaining their grinning bad boy enthusiasm and refreshingly complex songwriting.įrom the opening notes it’s readily apparent that Asking For A Ride is looking to bust the White Reaper sound wide open with a harder edge and a darker tone that’s more aggressive than anything the band has put to record before. Seeking to shed any pre-conceived notions about their overall artistic integrity and refute any whispered allegations of selling out, or at the very least simply to stretch in new directions, White Reaper have put together their fourth LP, one that challenges preconceptions while still making plenty of room for the high-energy guitar heroics that the band has made their modus operandi. Three LPs of increasingly adept power-pop with a scruffy, punk rock attitude helped to establish the potently irresistible White Reaper formula, a formula that earned the band high-profile touring spots with long-running alternative rock standard-bearers such as Spoon and Pearl Jam. ![]() If any criticism could be levied against White Reaper it’s that the band is consistent, nearly to a fault.
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