MASSHYSTERI:
Vår Del Av Stan: LP
For anyone who’s unaware, Sweden’s Masshysteri rose from the rubble of one of the best punk rock bands of the last few years, The Vicious. A bit of an instrument shuffle, an even heartier helping of Robert and Sara’s dual vocals, and a debut 7” later and we’ve arrived at Masshyteri’s first full length offering. This record is, pretty simply, fucking amazing. The obvious Wipers/Misfits worship of The Vicious is much less apparent in Masshysteri’s songs. The tracks on Vår Del Av Stan are of a more stripped down pop formula while incorporating a wider array of styles and influences into the approach. The choruses are incredibly memorable and have me singing along constantly in my best (read: terrible) syllabic attempt at Swedish. Essentially, what you’ve got here are eleven dark-yet-upbeat pop punk rockers that I really feel should appeal to basement dwellers worldwide, regardless of which subgenre you might call home. The songwriting and sincerity in these songs is universal, a characteristic you’ll find is a constant in the Ny Vag collective. There’s something truly special going on there. –Dave Williams (Ny Vag, www.nyvag.com)