releases

mOck / Rapid Cities

split 7" (Asymmetrie / I Love To Hate Records) 2010

[bandcamp]


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tracks:

. mOck: count and release
. Rapid Cities: techno after party + after after party

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count and release

rec: Arne Ziemann

mix: Arne + Leif Ziemann

mastering: Bill Henderson

artwork: Matthi Ruthenberg

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reviews:

jerseybeat.com

Why is the world not singing the praises and celebrating the obvious brilliance of Rapid Cities? This act was born too late, for they would have defined the Dischord roster in the 90’s. Pointless nostalgia aside, these guys are amazing and need to be heard. “Techno After Party” has a moody, start/stop aesthetic which is soaring in terms of beauty and intensity. The guitar work is pristine, the vocals and powerful, and the rhythm section is flawless. This was so good, even my cat sat down and listened. Find this immediately and make these guys rock stars.

Germany’s Mock is a bit tougher to grasp than RC. Their song structure on “Count and Release’ is more complex and angular, making it both fascinating and frustrating. Therefore, it does what good art is supposed to do, which is confound and engage, and the deliberate vocal style and challenging guitar riff will do just that. Mock finds a disjointed quality within their harmonies, but the convoluted nature of “Count and Release” goes on for too long. There is a great idea in the center of this song; it just requires a great amount of work to enjoy it.

[http://www.jerseybeat.com/quinlan-chronicles.html]



7inches.blogspot.com

This single from Love/Hate Records, like the split with Tragwag from yesterday also has a Brickmower connection. Those guys get around, actually just noticed they're in Brooklyn, Nov 4th. Might just have been a coincidence, but I'm pretty sure that's how this ended up in the 7Inches mailbox. This split single is from rapid cities and mOck, Rapid Cities just finished a tour with mOck and they must have played with Brickmower at some point being from New Brunswick, N.J.....N.J. could use more of this polished post-hardcore sound. There's nothing wrong with a great melodic complex foundation, you can be just as angry. Then there's the title, "Techno After Party?", uh oh. But no, the insert card actually has the lyrics, which completely explained this and added another level to the track. Frustration over a shared bill with people dancing to techno. I get it, I could see this...what kind of scenes exist anymore? Is it all just a mess of genre smashing? or You'll dance to anything?. I like the idea that all of these things could come together and be appreciated on some level....not like Judgement Night, but that there could be a mixed show of guys all working in interesting ways that cross over more subtly. Enough to be appreciated by the other group of dudes there to see it. That's what's great about the Fucking Champs, and even Ween, their audience is all over the place. But after playing a show to a disinterested crowd and they started raving out...it would be make me throw my hands up. At least that's what I'm getting out of this...it's pretty abstract in that great way. Sunny Day Real Estate lyrics. I'm also not going to say it's like Fugazi, that's obviously too easy..and aren't there any other bands working in this melodic heavy way with understandable vocals? Complex changes where rhtyhms are forced to fit together, almost to see if this is really going to work. It's well thought out, playing on the classic elements of the genre, intricate distortion, off rhythm, unnatural changes. The quiet breakdown, overlapping melody, repetitive vocals over the crunk, crunk of muted chords, that understated buried yell. The mOck side, from Germany, are pushing this sound as well, testing the complexity of the pieces. I think this math, post hardcore sound is always going to work for me. I feel smart...at least these guys are busting their ass, rehearsing, playing with the rhythm structure. I have to put it on another level immediately. I just wonder with a band like this...it reminds me of the Sailors or Bronze situation...they must be a little isolated and have to play with those terrible pointless split bills as well?....but maybe I'm just thinking about that because of Rapid Cities. They break off into instrumental sections with lots of what has to be fret tapping, it almost feels proggy even. The vocals are even more abstract in this one, but that's to be a little expected.Solid, interesting, smart post punk rock....And it's $4???!!!! On clear blue vinyl from Love/Hate Records. Wait...who hates records?

[http://7inches.blogspot.de/2010/10/rapid-cities-mock-split-on-lovehate.html]



thenewscheme.com

Having listened to Rapid Cities since their first demo, it has been great to watch them progress toward the sound they achieved here. Rapid Cities played D.C. influenced post-hardcore and always put on a phenomenal show regardless of the size of the venue. They parted ways shortly after this release, and after hearing “Techno After Party,” it was evident everything was coming together and they easily would have been one of the best bands playing this style right now. mOck is a band from Berlin, Germany that draw comparisons to North of America and Karate and I desperately wish they would put out a full-length. I played this split to death over the last half of 2010 and watching these bands perform together was one of the most awe-inspiring shows I have seen.

[http://www.thenewscheme.com/new/news/4]



Maximum Rock N Roll

First up we have one song from MOCK, a band from Berlin, Germany.  This reminds me of some of the more recent offerings from Dischord.  It's a bit on the slow side, the vocals are a bit drab, but the song takes some twist and turns, such that at almost six minutes long, it doesn't get stale.  RAPID CITIES is from New Brunswick, New Jersey and contributes two songs, though one is a short instrumental.  I think they would fit nicely on the No Idea roster of bands alongside TWELVE HOUR TURN and STRIKEFORCE DIABLEO - a little melody, a little dissonance, with sung/spoken vocals.  RAPID CITIES has released an LP and I plan to search it out.  Blue vinyl. (MD)

[Maximum Rock N Roll Nr. 331]



Durchdes Welt

Hmm, jetzt sitze ich schon 10 Minuten vor dem Cover der mOck & Rapid Cities Split 7inch und versuche eine evtl. Kernaussage aus dem Gekritzel zu interpretieren. Zu einer Antwort bin ich dennoch nicht gekommen. Die abstrakte Note passt allerdings prima zu mOck aus Berlin, welche mich schon seit dem voran gegangenen Split mit We fade to gray zu begeistern wussten. „Count and Release“ heißt ihr Beitrag auf dem 500 Stück limitierten blauen Vinyl. Ich bin erstaunt wie Präzise man in der limitierten Spielzeit einer Single in einem Song soviel Stimmung rüber bringen kann, wie es andere Kapellen nicht auf einem Longplayer schaffen. Knappe 6 Minuten wird hier eine Exkursion durch diverse Post Indi Bereiche mit Math Rock Ausflügen geboten. Man nimmt sich ausreichend Zeit für den Stimmungsaufbau und entgeht gekonnt möglichen Überfrachtungen. Zwischendurch hört man etwas alte Karate und ein wenig Fugazi von Seiten der feinen Bassbetonungen. Klingt äußerst anspruchsvoll und spielt mit der Liebe zum Detail.


mOck präsentiert Musik zum zurück lehnen, um diese gedanklich zu sezieren. Rapid Cities aus New Jersey bieten melodisch angehauchten rockigen emotionalen Hardcore, breakreich und eigenwillig. Auch wenn ihr Beitrag „Techno after Party“ und das instrumentale Follow Up „After after Party“ nicht zu 100 % meinem Geschmack entspricht, klingt deren Sound dennoch besonders und hebt sich deutlich vom Einheitsbrei der Releasefluten ab. Besonders zu gefallen weis der ausdrucksstarke Gesang der gefühlsbetont jedoch niemals weinerlich klingt. Der Song entwickelt sich zum Ende hin in eine experimentellere Richtung als erwartet. Für die ein oder andere Überraschung gut….

[http://www.durchdeswelt.de/2010/12/20/mock-rapid-cities-split-7inch/]