The Number 12 Looks Like You - Put On Your Rosy Glasses Review
by Scott F
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This is a repress of the first album by New Jersey's The Number Twelve Looks Like You. The Number12 has gained immense popularity amongst fans of grindcore and 'extreme' hardcore over the years by crafting a razor sharp sound rooted in tech-metal and by touring with large acts like Thursday. Long time fans of the band know what to expect and will not be disappointed. For everyone else, the album itself is too obviously haunted by the looming specter of metal giants the Dillinger Escape Plan and never seems to find a personality of its own. To be fair, this sextet tries hard to mix their own sound in with the same old, same old, but nothing they bring to the table is especially memorable. The songs amount to long strings of musical non-sequiturs which end up being just annoying instead of alarming."Don't Bleed on my Prada Shoes" is a solid opener, showcasing driving riffs and the best use of their two vocalists. Afterwards, the album descends into dragging mediocrity punctuated by "Document. Grace Budd." an extended sample that serves as an unwarranted fake track on such a short disc. The band continues exploring the standard fare of modern hardcore including tracks like "Blue Dress" which are filled past the point of good taste with double bass. "Empty Calm" is a 3 minute instrumental which leads into the last track with just an acoustic guitar playing. Once "Civeta Dei" begins though, the band demonstrates how much they hate musical transitions and recognizable themes. The song plows through an emo section, a grind section, and straight up metal before it's done. The problem being that, unlike bands like Hella or Behold the Arctopus whose song structures are even more complex, the Number 12 try so hard to sound jarring that they let musicality and songwriting fall by the wayside. The band has had several releases since this record first came out, including 2005's much lauded An Inch of Gold for an Inch of Time. Even though they seem to have found a niche they're happy to occupy, I think they could put together their obvious musical talents to create a more interesting and original effort in the future.
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