About one month ago I heard that a band called R.A.M.B.O. from Philadelphia, PA is coming to Finland in February and they're play some hardcore with some thrash influences and that it's really wild stuff.
Then I downloaded 2 mp3�s and they were good. Of course I had to buy their record when I saw it in the distro...
As I said, they play (old school) hardcore with some thrash influences. And it sounds really good. After fast parts come the mosh parts (is it mosh parts? I'm not heavy enough to know that kind of stuff). I don't know what else I should say about the music. Simply, it's good hardcore! And of course there are a lot of sing-a-long parts so you can yell it out at gigs.
Lyrically, I like them very much. Like the booklet says: "Rambo is an anarchist army that uses gimmicks and hardcore punk to combat capitalism, organized religion, and all other forces of evil." Does it sound like it might be too much for anti-PC-jerks? Maybe, but even you anti-PC-jerks should listen to what these guys have to say. The lyrics are about religion (�Ian McKaye Is My Savior�, �No Circle Pits In Heaven�, and �Jesus' Middle Initial Does Not Stand For Hardcore�), fucked up government (�Wall Of Death The System�, �Smack The State�), and DIY (�Your Apathy Makes This An Institution�). Every song has a point and the lyrics are written very well; serious things, but with humor. Maybe little bit in the same way Propagandhi does.
I have to mention one of my favorite songs, �Honorable Discharge�, which is a story about their ex-bass player and their ex-player is featured in that song. The story goes something like this: first Rambo was just a side project for their ex-bassist, but because the ex-bassist was a singer in Kid Dynamite, he didn't have any time for Rambo so the rest of the guys replaced him when he was on a tour... That's really great song!
I think it's obvious that if the lyrics are great and the music is really good this is really good record and you shouldn't miss this. I can't find anything bad out from this one.
The CD contains live video footage of their show in Philadelphia on July 2nd, 2001. It's REALLY WILD stuff so I recommend to you to check �em out! At least I'm not gonna miss them! (knock on wood...)
Tracklist:
1. Wall Of Death The System