by Leor Galil
When Chicago punk trio No Men issued their 2016 debut, Dear God, Bring the Doom, they proved to me they could hurl noise with crushing force. Their new third album, the self-released Fear This, proves that they can also make that bracing racket groove like hell. Bassist DB saturates No Men’s songs with thick, melodic riffs that provide plenty of swing at any speed. Front woman Pursley sings in a wrought-iron holler with intense but tightly controlled vibrato, and sometimes she also plays a floor tom and snare to double or punctuate Eric Hofmeister’s whirlwind drums. Fear This also spotlights No Men’s range: they could easily play loud and fast from wall to wall, but their frequent midsong shifts leave a deeper mark. The doomy “California Rocket Fuel” alternates between a seesawing grind and a sinister, plodding drone, and its sloshing rhythms will rattle you worse by hitting you both ways. Steve Albini engineered Fear This, and it sounds great—but just as important, his famous name might bring more underground rock fanatics to their new favorite band. View article at chicagoreader.com