Fresh, fast and delightfully furious

San Diego-based punk band Negative Blast has stormed onto the scene with their debut full-length record Echo Planet, which is nothing short of furious. From electric-fueled guitar riffs to swift drum movements, the album is an energy boost from a loose wire.

With static drizzling behind an empty starting point, vocalist Rainier Pesebre tells the audience that they aren’t going to do something and starts to release a rampage of hatred against someone who’s seriously ticked him off on “Boy Blues.” Flanger-ridded guitar parts provided by Alex Jacobelli help set the lyrics in stone with a driving riff that starts and stops to help emphasize the poison-laced words. That’s just the start.

What’s impressive about Negative Blast’s sound is how Pesebre’s wild vocals aren’t overshadowed by the instrumental; they play with a delicate balance some punk bands fail to find. It may be the experience all the members have from their previous punk work, including bands such as Lewd Acts or Hour of The Wolf, that the band has learned to find their own rhythm. In the verses, when Pesebre’s vocals come in, the guitars and bass seem to fade into the background before ramping up again as the counterweight of Pesebre rises to the surface.

“Carbon Copy” sounds like a slightly more restrained version of “Getting On/Getting Off” from their 2020 EP, The First Four Months. As Pesebre eggs on an adversary, guitars thrash in and out like punches being thrown in a fistfight, and the drums supplied by Mario Rubalcaba are the landing blows: “You wanna go?/ Let’s go/ You’re about to find out!/ To me, you’re all the same!”

While most of the album follows a traditional punk method, one of its later tracks stands out as its best, with a significantly pop-punk vibe. “The King In Vancouver” keeps the same vocal style as the rest of the album, with more upbeat guitar work and smoother drum flourishes that help stylize the track further. The lyrics are also more hopeful and reflective in nature, thinking of the great times shared with a friend when things start to get hard: “Sometimes when life is just too fucking rough/ I think of all the times we shared/ I dream of when I can see you again/ My friend!”

Overall, Echo Planet is a solid punk album with a few flourishes that keep it new and fresh. With a fast pace and lyrical shifts, it soars into the galaxy with lightning-fast precision and a killer drum fill to spare.