Wednesday, August 24, 2022

Musings: Black Budget - Crown of Misery

Black Budget is a desert punk band based in Toronto, Canada. The trio features Pedro Alvarado, Jack Laing, and Michael Orpen. They’ve released a handful of singles thus far but on September 23rd, they’ll unleash their brand-new EP, Crown of Misery. They describe themselves as “featuring roaring guitars, aggressive drums, rib-crushing bass, and ferocious vocals” and they deliver on that promise—in spades. The 4-song EP is a brisk 15-minute affair that will get your blood pumping.

“Detonator” kicks off the proceedings with a bang: a straight-up, high-energy punk song with thumping bass, guitars dipped in vitriol, and fierce vocals. “May 19th” has a catchy riff, and just like its lyrics say, “I’m still in your head” and “I am in your head”, this song too will stay stuck in your head! It also features terrific drumming and is a definite highlight of the four tracks. “Acid Tongue” has a foreboding vibe to it that I really dig with great guitar parts. This is the best of the four songs, in my humble opinion. We close off with “Talk”, the mellowest of the bunch but still a kick-ass song, and while I found the previous track to be the best, this one, however, is my personal favourite. It’s got really cool lyrics, a catchy rhythm with a relentless guitar sound.

While I’m usually not much of a fan of punk rock, I found Black Budget’s brand of fuzzy desert punk quite enjoyable. They’re a good blend of punk, fuzz, and desert rock (hence the term fuzzy desert punk), but they really do bring something fresh to the table. If you enjoy either of those genres of music or fancy music that raises a little hell, then by all means give their songs a spin. Check out/pick up Crown of Misery once it drops on September 23rd and you’ll see for yourself how infectious this set of songs is.

Black Budget on Bandcamp: https://blackbudget.bandcamp.com

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