After a couple of solid first offerings, their self-titled debut from 2015 and 2018's Limitations, Vancouver's NEEDS return with their third release, the three-song Split EP, introduced by its opening cut, Into Ether, a powerful noise rocker that pairs well to the sound of genre greats such as Shellac, Big Black and The Jesus Lizard.
Defying conformity and constraints, NEEDS keep looking forward and experiment, trying their hand at different approaches, as the new EP seems to be covering different aspects of the genre, ranging from post hardcore to more traditional ways, always through an unconditionally poetic lens, and politically charged.
Into Ether is grounded on sharp and acidic lyrics, and delivered through the band's distinct density, ardent on both an instrumental and vocal level. Although the friskiness isn't as evident as it was on Limitations two years ago, NEEDS' new EP once again lays out the band's radical and intransigent spirit, and it's a set of tracks which hopefully will be pushing their reputation a few steps forward.
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