Hardcore Supergroup Open City (Featuring Members of Kid Dynamite, Lifetime, Ceremony) Release New Songs “City of Ash” and “A Condition Worth a Mention”

Question: What’s better than all your favorite bands releasing new music simultaneously?

Answer: All your favorite bands coming together to form a supergroup and make music together.

The Philadelphia based supergroup, Open City, initially formed in 2015. The hardcore band is made up of Rachel Rubino (Worriers, Bridge & Tunnel), Dan Yemin (Lifetime, Kid Dynamite), Andy Nelson (Ceremony, Kid Dynamite) and Chris Wilson (Ted Leo’s Pharmacists). According to Stereogum, the band began as a touring group, but earlier this year they released their debut self-titled album. Now, they are following up their intense initial release with a pair of singles titled, “City Of Ash” and “A Condition Worth A Mention.”

“City of Ash,” is and unforgiving and inexorable track. It is frantic with seemingly endless energy. It abandons rhythm and melody and focus on noise and energy. However, the pockets are filled with almost intractable melodic lines that add intrigue. The seemingly Adderall induced energy level takes a break towards the middle. The middle slows down to call attention to reverb-heavy guitar riffs. The song is a sonic representation of the Yellow Brick Road in The Wizard of Oz: it is dynamic and twisting and welcomes many diverse sights along the way.

“A Condition Worth Mention,” is a bit slower with growling vocals and intense drum patterns. Both the vocals and the drums are extremely unpredictable and refuse to conform to any meter. They are offbeat, frenetic and chaotic. The guitar serves an underlying melodic backbone for the seemingly random vocal and drum sounds.