Album Review: Lariats – “Our Native Tongue is Bad News”

Every publicity write up for the Lariats’ new EP boldly claims “This band is formed by fire and friendship. Lariats are unstoppable.” So of course going into this review, I had low hopes and an expectation for 30 minutes of whiny, cocky bastards. Besides, I’m generally wary of bands who feel the desire to give their songs overly indulgent, wordy monikers.

Yea, I take all of that back. Lariats’ EP “Our Native Tongue is Bad News” (follow up to last year’s “”If Mediocrity Was A Body Of Water, We Would Have All Drowned By Now””) is defiantly worth a listen, despite the clunky song names (“The Citizens of Dodge Respectfully Deny Your Request for Residency”).

Frequently compared to Title Fight, Hot Water Music, Polar Bear Club and others, Lariats is unafraid to self-define as punk/emo. Perhaps better described as “punk/melodic/emo/post-whatever from Tucson,” Lariats is a mash up of members who’ve done this before in every band from the Bled, to Youinseries, to Versus The Mirror, and American Black Lung. That pedigree shows; everything here is well executed and packing a serious punch.

Holman’s vocals rasp out 6 songs with the sort of emotional weight you’d except from an emo act wavering between singing and screaming. “I should get an award not for being the best, but for not being the worst” he hollers on “The World is Very Big and We are Very Small” “all my choices fall between fucked up and fucking awful.” Yet, unlike many acts lampooned as emo, Lariats pairs the introspective lyrics with a thundering beat (Skibar on drums, and Wo on Bass) and energetic guitar work ( Ryan and Zorilla). The combination keeps things interesting, and the catchy hooks have been stuck rolling around in my brain since the first listen. Unlike so much of the sub-genra, Lariats is sincere without being saccharine.

Following the same vein of clunky song names with masochistic lyrics, “Art-Thritis (Wicked Band Logo)” opines “there’s not enough ammunition to go around, so grab the first human shield… we’ve all miscarried something that we’ve loved.” While not exactly uplifting, the lyrics play out like an emotional release- a coming to terms with baggage carried and amended expectations.

My favorite track is the closing song, “The Room is Very Quiet and We are Very Loud.” With scream-along repetitive choruses of “Take what you want,” the song delivers an unrelenting beat, spinning into 5 minutes of self-deprecating sound. The only real fault I can find is the quick duration- 6 songs clock in at around a half hour, but left me wanting more.

Something about this release reminds me exactly of the summers I spent sitting in my first car desperately plotting how to escape town and never come back. Lariats haven’t invented something totally new and unique on this EP, but they are playing to a classic sound with a good deal of respect and know-how. You can stream some of their songs here . Their EP is out on Negative Progression Records now.

4/5 Stars