Artist - Red Tape
Album - Radioactivist
Label - Roadrunner Records
Rating - ****
Reviewer - Marc Halverson
Red Tape’s latest release, “Radioactivist, has a distinct ‘start the pit!’ mentality, and is rooted in 1980’s punk rock ideals. It’s thrash music with melodic singalongs and a moshy, metallic edge,” (Roadrunner Artist: Red Tape). With influences drawn from Minor Threat and 7 Seconds to At The Gates and Pain of Mind, Red Tape is definitely punk at heart; and “Radioactivist,” is nothing short of thrash-punk at its best.
Radioactivist opens with a weird, noisy intro and then dives right into “Damage Control,” which sets the tone for the rest of the album. Next, “High Revoltage,” is a very fast-paced and heavy with the chorus of, “riot is what we need.” From this point on, Red Tape tear through 12 more tracks of anarchic and political rebelliousness that will appeal to the die hard punk following. Other catchy tracks are ‘Stalingrad’, ‘Droppin’ Bombs On Your Moms’, to the hardcore groove of “El Salvador,” Radioactivist stays true to its punk-thrash roots while the catchy chorus’ manages to appeal to the commercial audience.
Red Tape is best described as, “if you mix Black Flag, Rancid and the off the cuff edginess of Amen (Without the metallic aspect of their music), you will get an idea of where the band are coming from,” (Justin Donnelly, www.blistering.com). If you are a true old school, thrash-punk mixed with hardcore, then check out Red Tape and prepare to singalong with “Radioactivist.”
Red Tape are:
Jeff Jaworski – Guitar, Vocals
Twig Von Wussow – Bass
JD – Drums
Mark Meraji - Guitar
