Nothing on Rainbows From Atoms duplicates the anthemic headbanging rush of “Nothing Is Easy” (just reissued on the Simple Machines singles collection, The Machines), but that’s okay. Pretty much every song here consists of sung poetry over a repeating musical motif, broken up more often by dynamic shifts than actual choruses or bridges. When the riffs are compelling and the words are thought-provoking, its’ a pleasure getting grabbed and tossed into the undertow. Other times, the “huh” factor sets in and I’m left cold — but this happens far less often with Lungfish than with some other DC bands.*
That’s probably due to guitarist Asa Osbourne’s wealth of hypnotic guitar lines that stand up to the repetition, and the fact that singer/lyricist Daniel Higgs has a passionate voice and plenty to say, no matter how elusively he may sometimes to choose to say it.
When Flex Your Head came out, I don’t think many many people expected Dischord to become the haven for hard-hitting yet obsessively cerebral art bands that it is today. But that’s what happened, and Lungfish may be shaping up to be the best of their kind to come along since Fugazi hit their stride.
*Yes, Lungfish are actually from Baltimore, but I didn’t know this then and the Dischord connection threw me off.