Review: Mutant Love – “Revolution, Redacted (Part One)”

Self-released, 1 April 2020

Mutant Love does some rough and ragged punk stuff.

Mutant Love comes out of Texas doing some catchy punk things topped off with vocals by someone going by honeykut who sounds a little like he belongs with Rancid.  On Revolution, Redacted (Part One), Mutant Love pumps out five songs of straightforward punk rock and roll, most of them pretty good.  

Revolution, Redacted (Part One) is a work in progress.  The (Part One) part of the title references that they had to stop recording about half way through a record that was intended as a full length due to the COVID catastrophe.  But the half we get drips with frustration, angst, and anger.  Maybe my favorite bats lead off.  “Over It” works with some cool buzzing guitars that come up time and again on the record, but this riff sticks for me.  It’s also got a sort of weird lead guitar and some alternating vocals, leaning into that kind of Rancid vibe I mentioned earlier.  The song is pretty catchy and fun.  “Ollie Ollie Oxycontin” is another burner, with a really cool hook and some great lead guitar on the bridge.  And “Diane” gives up their Texas roots a bit with a sort of cowboy melody and some more cool lead guitar and a catchy vocal hook with “Diane is dead”.

The other couple of songs are more of the mid-tempo variety.  “Stanford Prison Blues” mixes some slow burn feedback and chiming guitar notes with an okay guitar riff and the drums sound really awesome on this one (especially the kick for some reason).  But the song is just so-so for me.  Landing much better is “Crime Spree”.  This one has a great fuzzy riff and a catchy hook, plus the lead guitar is pretty good and the vocal melody is an earworm, leaving the whole thing stuck in my head afterwards.  I like this one quite a bit.     

Mutant Love has some pretty good songs on their hands here.  Revolution, Redacted is a catchy quick listen that’ll land right for people who like their punk rock with a bunch of phlegm, attitude, and hooks.