CRNKSHFT - S/t

#FOR FANS OF: Heavy/Hard Rock/Post-Grunge, Alice in Chains, Pantera

I’ve to admit that my first impression of CRNKSHFT wasn’t the best. Not only because of the no-vowels all-caps stupid-looking monicker, my inability to guess the correct pronunciation (“Crankshift”? “Crunkshift”?), or the album cover, which reminds me too much of something that Five Finger Death Punch would come up with, but also the fact that they mention groups like Shinedown, Godsmack, and other butt rock bands I totally despise as influences. But some people say you don’t have to judge a book by its cover, or a band by the way they chose to present themselves, and CRNKSHFT manage to overcome my prejudices, most of them created and developed by years of liking to talk a lot about things I don’t like, with their debut EP. Not sounding that much like the aforementioned bands, or at least not in the way I use to remember them, this Canadian group delivers four songs of good “modern” hard rock, with heavy guitars and catchy choruses. Instrumentally, they sometimes remind me of the rockier Metallica, and the vocals sound in-between Alice In Chains and the typical post-grunge “clean growls”. Without being mindblowing in any shape of form, I never wanted to skip any of this songs while I was listening to them, which is a lot more than what I can say about any fucking Puddle of Mudd song. If I had to pick a favorite, “Breaking The Silence” would’ve been played to death at Mtv, and the catchyness of “Tears Me Apart” is really hard to miss. The mixing and production are great, very professional without sounding overproduced. There are some things to improve, obviously: CRNKSHFT don’t seem very interested in taking many risks, with the songs being a little samey-sounding in repeated listens. And sometimes they come as a little over-dramatic, although their subtly socially conscious lyrics makes it a little more palatable than with other bands of the same style. Overall, CRNKSHFT’s self-titled debut EP is a pleasant surprise. I’d recommend it to anybody who likes any of the aforementioned bands. And if you don’t like them, you can listen to it and rock some tunes without any guilt. (Martín Álvarez Cirillo)

(Self - 2017)
Score: 70

https://soundcloud.com/crnkshft