Lake County, IL doesn’t seem to be the place you’d find good punk, but locals The Revision Plan are reason enough to beg to differ. Not only was Lake County home to the once infamous venue Pirate Studios in Grayslake, IL, it has produced inspiration for this three piece punk band through a number of talented locals. Two years in the making The Revision Plan has been working hard, playing tirelessly around the Chicagoland area and sharing the stage with such bands as Counterpunch, Rule 22, and She Likes Todd. Melodic and fast paced, much like their influences The Swellers and Much the Same, The Revision Plan comes to their audience with energy, talent, and most importantly- passion.
Their recent release Navigations (January 23rd 2009) is a six song E.P., full of all the drive and precision promised in their live performances. With lyrics stemming beyond the traditional misconception of punk being all about anarchy and PBR, their words are a call for change in oneself, moving on, and ultimately what the title track is about: navigating life. The consistency of the message they deliver is something to be appreciated, but one has to hope that they broaden their horizons as far as lyrical content goes in the future. Lines like “You’ve sought out what you’ll never find the truth lies vaguely near/Life is shouting at you friend, but now you’ve covered up your ears” in ‘Tentative Precision’ are well written, but can only tout their message so many times before it all starts to sound the same.
The Revision Plan tastefully takes influence from many bands, two of the most apparent being Alkaline Trio and early Ryan’s Hope. Hearty drums from Marcus Nuccio, thriving bass from Dustin Karasek, and rapid guitar from Garik Niffenegger all combine to make music that demands you to move around. Niffenegger’s vocals fall somewhere between Denis Buckley (88 Fingers Louie, The Story So Far, Zero to Sixty) and early Billie Joe Armstrong (Green Day, Pinhead Gunpowder, The Network, Foxboro Hot Tubs) appealing to even those apprehensive of Punk.
This three-piece band shows heart and promise, and we think Chicago can look forward to seeing more of them in the coming years.
www.myspace.com/therevisionplan
Navigations is available at:
Tags: Album Review, Local Music
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