Asymmetry Set

Bright Calm Blue doesn't offer any of the serenity that their name suggests. This is hardcore punk like 108 used to play, but with a serious dose of post-rock. The Nebraska band does it well, with angular guitars, driving rhythms, and shredding vocals, but somehow it seems like Bright Calm Blue is treading all-too-familiar ground. Milemarker, for example, is both more aggressive and more experimental, pushing the limits of hardcore music until the genre boundary is entirely dissolved. Still, the rolling keyboards on Asymmetry Set's "A Tongue to Taste" deftly evoke the mod fury of bands like International Noise Conspiracy, and this single song shows that Bright Calm Blue is a band with a huge potential that they haven't yet tapped.