Death Grips- Government Plates (2013)

Death Grips- Government Plates (2013)

A lot of bands are lazy bastards, they realize a record with 10 or 12 songs and rest on their butts for two or three years, and then they complain that they are forgotten easily, Death Grips aren’t such a band, almost every year, or sometimes two times a year we have a new recording by them, this is what shows me the love for the music this band has, their complete disregard toward the music industry, they control their careers, they control their music and nobody else gets in the way between the band and the audience, thanks to the internet the prostitution trap in which most artists fall, is getting severely damaged and the music industry is changing, at least for those who want freedom  and a change.

I’m blown away anytime I listen to Death Grips, their music came in a time that it perfectly matched the violent and misfortunate turmoil of today’s society, the decline of capitalism, social agitation, globalization, corruption, consumerism and a desperate need for stronger values and compromise, in such times Death Grips seem destined to be the flag band for the revolution, a revolution that demands intelligence, and strategy, not pure brute force, and that’s precisely the big triumph of this band, they are immersed in immense self confidence, their approach is intelligent, defiant and in case this all doesn’t work, they have brute force, lean muscle and the strength to carry on.

Government Plates is their latest record, issued a couple of days ago, for free via the internet, another big “fuck you” to the music industry, the band shows once again the full control over their music and their times, and the bands shows their prolific and energetic approach to music, if you stay too much time seated your ass gets bigger, you get fat and your movements become slow, but in the case of Death Grips, dynamics are permanent and the band stays in constant motion, they sounds as the soundtrack to one of those reality TV shows in which a personal trainer “punish” lazy bastards to get into shape, and that precisely seem to be the message here, Move! Get Into Shape! Get Ready!.

You might think he loves you for your money but I know what he really loves you for it's your brand new leopard skin pillbox hat, sounds how defiant the band is, no hope for radio ever playing something like this, but who cares, the maniac vocals resounds furiously, as we are hit by tremendous amount of bass, forget about guitars and distortion, bass distortion is the drive of some of the most adventurous and daring extreme music nowadays, forget about your typical verse-verse-chorus-verse structure, DG dwell on a full anarchic base in which you will never know what will hit you next, and that’s another premise of the band, as you advance on the next song, Anne Bonny into a more electronic and contemplative territory, once again taking us out of balance, while bass hit us merciless once again, totally experimental hip hop beats seem to lurk in the backgrounds, and electricity and pure brute force remain on the top, the attack and energy of the band is relentless, and it seems like the singer is trapped on a bestial electrical storm, and he is courageously defying it, and surviving.

What remains the most shocking feature on DG sounds is their ability to mix sounds, tease us with apparently softer electronic atmospheres and suddenly introducing harsh hip hop beats, and it that wasn’t enough, they add abrasive distorted bass and maniacal vocals on top of it all, without a doubt a lethal mix, as in Two Heavens, and when we get to This Is Violence the band takes a completely surreal approach, they put your feet into movement, and then madness breaks loose, you can bet the band are taking more chances in this recording, they are experimenting more, and they are facing bigger risks, like in Birds, obviously the band by instinct recognizes that their revolutionary approach may be reaching stagnation any time soon, not now, but they are beginning to branch out, to find new sonic territories and they are succeeding once again, at least this time, of course there are the trademark brutal electric discharges like Feels Like A Wheel, but there are surprise tunes like I’m Overflow, Big House or Government Plates that shows the band beginning to explore completely new places and opening their sounds to new resources and embracing atmospheres more than any of their past records.

DG remains an exciting new world of sound, the formula is not dated yet, but this relentless band seems to be taking a new approach to it, developing new strengths and always throwing themselves into discomfort zones, and emerging form them energized and renewed, taking us with them in this amazing trip.