From the first track of ‘Putain Royale‘, Belgian punks Pink Room sound rife with anger, or is it despair or even disgust? Perhaps it’s all three? Whatever it is, it is intense. Bassist/vocalist Bart Cocquyt, along with guitarist Glenn Janssens and drummer Jelle Lefebvre make quite a racket on their debut full-length (they’ve also released a couple of EPs). Musically Pink Room hits a sweet spot somewhere in the vicinity of noise, grunge, and hardcore and boasts the dirtiest guitars this side of Bleach-era Nirvana.
Villejuif Underground frontman Nathan Roche provides the spoken word intro before the filthy and hooky ‘Loser‘ kicks in and sets the stage for this wild ride. With Jesus Lizard’s aggression and Cobain’s hooks the trio blasts through a 9-track aural assault. The furious ‘Stay White‘ is propelled by a buzzsaw bass and crazed drumming while the metallic ‘Hail Satan‘ smacks of the stomping post-hardcore of Future of the Left.
The height of Pink Room’s power is reached on ‘Live Laugh Love‘ a masterpiece of caustic rock and roll energy, with Cocquyt’s vocal chord damaging wail. There’s some Mclusky like fury with ‘All Brakes No Gas‘, and the galloping ‘Colin‘ leading to the angular jagged fracas of ‘Skin‘ featuring Sam De Clercq from Brorlab. The one-two punch of ‘The Most Underrated Piece Of Art Is Power‘ with its swirling chorus and wall of fuzz and the closer ‘Stay Black‘, a pit-ready blast of savage punk rock is exhausting.
It’s amazing that a trio can make this much noise, and I am very curious about what they are like live. On ‘Putain Royale‘ they call in the Belgian cavalry hosting a number of fellow citizens including members of Stake, Speedozer, Double Veterans, Little Trouble Kids, Whorses, Vonnis, and the aforementioned Brorlab.
Clocking in at around 21 minutes ‘Putain Royale‘ is a raw, pummeling demonstration of force and fury.
Out now on ZoeZoe Records, Rockerill Records, and Six Tonnes De Chair Records.
