Spirit of
Metal qualifies
ASG as a “
Death n’ Roll” band; I confess that I’m not entirely sure what that means. The “n’ Roll” part I get, there is a heavy Rock n’ Roll base to
ASG’s songs that is just plain good fun and makes you want to let down your hair, drink a shot and dance unselfconsciously. But the “
Death” part is more enigmatic, unless it is a description of
Jason Shi’s sometimes shouted vocals.
ASG is vastly underrated and unknown despite having toured with Motörhead, but the group remains for all intents and purposes local, appealing to the surf and skateboard crowd.
It is true that the genre that best applies to
ASG is hard to pinpoint, not entirely punk, stoner, metal, surf or strictly Southern-flavored rock, it’s a blend of all of the above and the 2005 album “Feeling Good Is Good Enough,” the band’s third, is the best example of this synthesis of styles. Purists of any one of the music genres cited above will scoff at
ASG... I’m no purist.
ASG may not speak to the angst-ridden teenage boy who lives inside me and will prefer
Repulsion,
Exhumed or
Napalm Death, but it certainly speaks to the woman who grew up in rural America listening to bands like
Cheap Trick and Mötley Crue on the radio. Asked to qualify its own style
ASG said, “If we had to classify it... we’d say we just play loud” and “we’re definitely not emo” that alone is a positive point in my book.
Short history of
ASG: Formed in 2001, the three piece punk-metal fusion band of
North Carolina surfers was initially lacking a singer until guitarist
Jason Shi stepped up to the mic.
And it’s a good thing he did, his voice is perfectly suited for the band’s style, he has a Southern surfer-dude twang, and I particularly love the raw-edge of his voice on songs from the album such as “Yes, We Are Aware” and “Going
Through Hell.”
With Andy Ellis on bass and Scott Key on drums, the group signed with Volcom in 2002 and released their debut self titled, largely instrumental album in 2003. An album with a handful of excellent tunes namely “Comosaguas,” “
Once again” and “Cowboys and Indians” that carry heavy, distorted riffs that are
ASG’s trademark. Initially called “All Systems Go” (until they found out that someone else already had that name)
ASG took on another guitarist, Jonah Citty after recording “Feeling Good” and their last album in 2007, “Win Us Over” is consequently richer guitar-wise tending towards Queens of the
Stone Age or
Black Tusk, with whom
ASG released a split album in 2009.
In all honesty my only real gripe with “Feeling Good” is that it comes across as being a tad over- produced. I have only seen
ASG live on video, but the edge they have on stage seems lost in the studio and I find that unfortunate. I would hate to see the band slide into a sort of commercially-accessible pop limbo where daring is not rewarded. The split album with
Tusk in 2009, produced by Phillip Cope of
Kylesa, reassures me that this won’t be the case and that
ASG will continue to dive even deeper into the type of unclassifiable rock that makes them stand apart.
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