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One-21
Grenade
2003, Facedown Records
One of the underground‘s most-respected and longest-running punk acts have turned a corner with this release. Starting in the mid-‘90s as another Philadelphia garage band, over time One-21 have produced albums that have steadily improved, along the way tearing through several different labels like the long-defunct Flying Tart Records. In fact, their last two discs, 2001‘s One-21 and now Grenade, represent the first time the band has released more than one album on the same label, and it would appear they‘ve found a home.
Perhaps the most distinctive-sounding artist on a Facedown roster featuring a slew of hardcore and metal bands (coupled with the newly-minted Strikefirst Records‘ hardcore onslaught, a subsidiary of Facedown), Philly‘s finest have come up with arguably the label‘s finest release to date. This album has charm, wit, soul, honesty and a joi de vivre that‘s extremely rare in the punk underground. On their self-titled album, the band - whose name is derived from Phillippians 1:21 - were noticeably more revved-up, singing songs of revolution alongside anti-war ballads (their timely cover of ‘Building Better Bombs‘) and in general raising cane, unwilling to be ignored. Grenade sees them toning down the guitar squall just a bit and injecting some rootsy Americana-type feel on songs like ‘Winning Team‘, a folksy, shambling ditty about how it‘s not how you play the game, it‘s whose team you‘re on. ‘Winning Team‘ and ‘Communion‘ are two of the best songs on the album, the latter confessing in the chorus: "I lied to you/to protect myself/to protect myself/I denied my Christ", leaving no doubt where the band‘s beliefs lie. ‘Tour‘ is an hilarious snapshot of life on the road, something One-21 are well accustomed to: "did you bring your toothbrush/yeah.../no you didn‘t did ya/no..../nothing ever goes the way it should" is crooned in this hysterical sotto voce, making the listener quite sure that this actually happened in some van, on some highway, somewhere in America.
Overall, a pure vibe of authenticity shines throughout Grenade, making it essential listening for anyone ‘punk‘ enough to try something with a lot more to it than most of what‘s peddled as punk nowadays.