4 out of 5

Label: self-released

Produced by: Daniel Florez (recorded, mixed and mastered by)

For how furiously Miracle Blood barrels out of riffy, Nomeansno hell with opener Slow Death, one might immediately one to characterize a 6-song EP of similarly vibed tunes as an out and out rush. And Cannibals – said EP – is a rush, but one with somehow an equal dose of patience, and thus, I think, staying power… despite some first-release flaws.

Nomeansno is absolutely a good touchpoint, as would be other similarly themed Alternative Tentacles acts: throaty shout-singing (mixed with an ability to effect some rather operatic singing as well), punk leaning aggression that’s tempered by post-punk counter rhythms, and a kind of one-step-removed emotionality that lends the music absolute passion, but delivered with a bit of a smirk and sneer. This template underlines every hard riff on Cannibals, and every song has a hard riff.

However: inbetween moments of headbanging, the niggling familiarity of this Alternative Tentacles sound easily slips into an appreciation for 90s grunge and alternative, with MB very much sounding like splashes of moderately cringey bits and bobs from Seven Mary Three’s throaty rawk, or Far’s emo metal, or Primus funk, or… like, Under the Bridge-era RHCP croon. And no, I don’t like all that stuff, but the fact that the source material may or may not be cringey is kinda besides the point, as MB pull out the pieces that work for them and kick ass with ’em. What is the point though is that it adds to a melting pot of influences that are still brewing: we absolutely get a sense of the band’s skills, interests, and abilities, but only flashes of some more unique identity, peeking out in that opener, or the soaring climax of the title track. Again on the plus side is that these flashes come very often, but still aren’t quite clear enough to kick the feeling that the inspirations are not too far below the surface.

Yet.

This is also one of those debuts that leaves you with no doubt that the band is on their way to defining their own corner of anarchic post-punk, and is equally expressive enough that, even once that time comes, going back and hearing the group during a more formative era will still be worth it.