Reviews

Every so often, my faith is restored in punk rock. I mean real punk rock, no post screamocore indie pop; the kind of music that makes you think and gets your adrenaline flowing from the energy, passion, and anger put in the music. This was accomplished in Cuban Ballerina, the debut effort by punk pseudo super-group Dead to Me (formed partially from former members of One Man Army and Western Addicitons former bassist Chicken, ironically a vegan). Cuban Ballerina tells a vivid story of rehab, political corruption, and love through energetic guitar chords and bass lines accented with solid old school punk beats wailed out on drums (without losing their melody).
 
Dead to Me popped seemingly out of no where. With most releases expected to be popular you hear something about the band before the release, but the hell if I could google these guys (before the album was released anyway). The album manages to change pace without ever losing the energy it starts off with in the political punk anthem “Don’t Lie”.
 
The album’s lyrics are emotionally charged, telling tales of addiction and rehab in songs like “Visitng Day” and “Cause of my Anger”. They are even strikingly real in the song “Visiting Day” in the lyrics “I woke up shaking in a room that I shared with 3 strangers,” as the last track on the LP. The majority of content on the CD is frustrated and refreshingly aggressive in a scene turned painfully apathetic. There are a few exceptions, like “Something New”, a song about a young person looking for a new perspective on life after addiction; but they still manage to never lose their momentum.
 
I’m going to keep this brief, because there’s only so much I can say about the CD before I just have to tell people to listen to it for themselves. It’s a solid punk rock album with passion and pure intentions. It’s an all around amazing debut effort besides a few uncomfortable attempts at screamo, but I think Fat Wreck did good by all of us with this release. That being said, kick ass CD, 4 stars, everybody go buy it!