Spitting and swaying as it lurches from your speakers, Everything Black, Everything Dead, the debut album by Australians Black Jesus, is steeped in cheap beer and arrives throwing punches.
As soon as you hit play, Black Jesus ensure you’re covered in their grime, filth and backwashed tinny* of Melbourne Bitter. Everything Black, Everything Dead places you amidst the front row of your local dive bar, the riffs are huge, and the urge to bang your head and throw a fist into the air is irresistible.
The Black Jesus sound is a melting pot of 80’s Punk/ Hardcore & D-Beat pioneers Discharge, meets From Enslavement to Obliteration era Napalm Death and Entombed’s Left Hand Path. It is entirely unpretentious, completely exhilarating, and has a nasty ‘f* off’ attitude to match. Where Black Jesus do it differently is that it’s all uniquely Australian. The tone, sentiment and feeling of the album is one that’s ubiquitous of Melbourne, the bands home city, and revels in its rich pub-rock history.
Black Jesus, whilst knowing how to entertain, are never a joke. The artwork produced by Glenno Smith is synonymous with the album’s content, being fun, lighthearted, and littered with narcotic paraphernalia. A spin of Everything Black, Everything Dead will have you smirking and air-drumming well before it’s over, and heading back to the bar for another round.
*Australian/NZ colloquial language for a can of beer.
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