Some side projects take quite a long time to release any music and remain rumors for a long time. Those familiar with the punk/hardcore bands The Old-Timers and Grace and Thieves may not realize that there has been a side project in the works with Donovan de Necker (The Old-Timers) and Jesse Parks (Grace and Thieves) since 2011. Of course geography comes into play here with Jesse being in Oregon and Donovan being in South Africa but through the joy of the internet even that could be overcome.
As the story goes…The Old-Timers had just finished recording Soli Deo Gloria and Donovan had a bunch of material left over that really didn’t fit with the OT vibe. Donovan got in touch with Jesse and then life in general intervened and everyone became too busy to work on the project. Fast forward to 2014 and everyone was able to find some time and work on the songs. As a way to introduce the band and possibly provide some motivation, Broken, has released a three song ep and is giving it away on Bandcamp. Should everything fall into place, future plans include releasing a full-length through Thumper Punk Records.
Fans of The Old-Timers will certainly recognize the influence of Donovan de Necker in the guitars and bass but will notice the overall speed of Broken is a tad bit slower than for the Old-Timers and at least one of the songs, “Civil Disobedience” actually clocks in at over 3 minutes. Guitars and drums still move at breakneck speed, but there are slower sections and even some spoken word parts. In terms of overall sound, I hear the Old-Timers, some Crucified, and actually some Left Out. Left Out was essentially a side project with Bryan Gray from the Blamed and some Crashdog and Crucified members and pretty much sounded like a mix of all those bands. I hear a lot of those sounds in Broken. Broken has that punk rock, in-your-face approach, with vocals are clear and have that angry, challenging tone, and guitars and drums that are fast and driving. Great intro to a side project we’ll be keeping an eye (and ear) on.
Rating: 7.5/10
Written by John Jackson
Tracklist:
1) Civil Disobedience
2) Distress Signal
3) The Unseen
Band Members:
Donovan de Necker – Guitars, bass
Jesse Parks – vocals
Matt – Drums
Record Label: Thumper Punk Records, Sept. 2014
Weblinks: Bandcamp / Facebook: