The band name, the cover art, the palm muted guitars in the opening seconds of the record…they set me on the wrong foot in terms of what to expect from Beat Up’s new record Satisfied? But isn’t music all about messing around with the expectations of the listeners? At the same time, I am not sure whether Beat Up care all that much about expectations. Probably they just play what they like. They clearly found their own niche that harbors elements of punk, indie rock, post punk and alternative music, sometimes all in the same song. The vocal melodies of Beat Up also are quite unique. It’s like Robert Pollard (of GBV) has been listening to street punk and celtic punk bands a lot. I am even hearing some Dag Nasty influences in album opener Us Vs. Them. In the end, the question mark in the album title almost reads like Beat Up want to taunt listeners out of their comfort zone. They even close out the record testing our attention span with three 5 minute songs, that are actually quite great. Satisfied? I’d say mission accomplished.
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