EP REVIEW: Occupants – Atom Driver

Despite having not released even a single album, it’s impossible to say that New Jersey-based ATOM DRIVER haven’t been a hard working bunch. Forming back in 2016, the band have already established an expansive back catalogue of music from a range of EP releases. In 2020, Chris ‘Crispy’ Corvino (DEADGUY, SECOND ARROWS) joined the band to handle vocal duties, and in the process the band reassessed their artistic direction, maintaining their core focus of an accessible blend of noise rock, punk rock and post-hardcore, yet pushing it in a more ferocious direction. Still in the throes of producing their debut record, the band are dropping a small collection of tracks to keep patient fans satiated for the time being.

At only three tracks long, and with none of those tracks reaching the three-minute mark in run-time, Occupants is a brisk sampling platter of what the band have to offer. From the get-go, the band’s artistic vision is clear to hear; the title track crams catchy, punk-infused choruses next to deftly performed instrumentals that possess surprising complexity beneath their snarling, noisy veneer. Some of the percussive passages laid down by Mike Polilli in the back half of the track are particularly fantastic, cutting through the dense walls of fuzzy noise with slick yet precise grooves.

Corvino is at the forefront of all of the tracks, with his vocals never dropping below guttural shouting, and sometimes pushing forwards into the territory of ferocious growls. It is retro rock goodness laced with just a hint of metal grit, especially on the track Say Anything You Want; there’s a real weathered soul to Corvino‘s delivery that makes him an incredibly distinct presence to behold. That continues to be true on the no-frills Dale Nixon, which strips away all of the complexities of the two previous tracks in favour of 1:27 of pure punk fury.

Whilst their artistic vision does manage to shine through, Occupants does feel like a collection of tracks plucked from the cutting room floor and assembled to keep their fans appeased. There is little tying these tracks together apart from the fact they are very clearly ATOM DRIVER tracks. Furthermore, whilst their musical ideas are clear, it would make for a huge improvement to hear those ideas pushed to even further creative extremes; Occupants makes for a fun listen, but not a memorable listen.

Regardless, for just under ten minutes Occupants does make you rock those devil horns and bang your head just like the legendary rock bands of days gone by intended. ATOM DRIVER are hard workers, and evidently patient craftsmen, taking their time with that debut LP; if the ideas presented here can be pushed a little further and polished a little more, then New Jersey might just have a fantastic band on their hands.

Rating: 6/10

Occupants is out now via self-release.

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