Paw - Dragline (1993)

These guys have been tossed in with the legion of post-Nirvana great grunge hopefuls, and that's unfair. For the most part, the overrated Seattle scene is nothing more than media hype feeding upon itself. Paw hail from Lawrence, Kansas, the heartland of America, and their music shows it, being equal parts thrash fury, roots rock and metallic frenzy. Paw have a dimension to their work that goes beyond their so-called "alternative" brethren, comprised of sincerity and passion that belies mindless posing and corporate image mongering. Paw are the real thing, dammit...

Dragline is an impressive debut, not only for what it presents, but also for what it doesn't. These are four guys reveling in the joy of being rockers, born for the spotlight and more concerned about getting on stage and jamming than in how their make-up looks. It translates into the grooves; Dragline shows a literal bitch's brew of musical and lyrical influences, both conscious and sub-conscious...a little Hendrix here, some Killing Joke there, a dash of Iggy for flavor. Their music is loud, raw and muscular, the sheer power of the songs threatening to overwhelm singer Mark Hennesex's abrasively melodic vocals. The lyrics, concerning themselves with the every day fears and dreams of the average person, are riddled with Grant Fitch's screaming guitar riffs, while the rhythm section of drummer Peter Fitch and bassist Charles Bryan are as heavy and monstrous as any I've heard since the aforementioned Killing Joke's early albums.

Successfully straddling that fine line between metal and punk, Paw deliver what others only hint at: hard, no compromise rock offered straight from the heart. (A&M Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Dragline from Amazon.com)