Following 2020’s Wanna Sell Your Soul? EP, on latest outing III, Zebrahead deliver five tracks of a mind at the end of its tether. Across the near 16-minute run time, we hear a mental state ride the rollercoaster of what it means to fall apart.
“This life is getting old” Estrella confesses over the soft piano of ‘Lay Me To Rest’. Where punk rock is typically bright sonically, the opening riffs here are dark and menacing. Estrella and co-vocalist-cum-rapper Ali Tabatabaee slip into an effortless exchange. It was expected there would be some teething problems but much like the collision of punk rock and hip-hop, it simply works.
As III rolls on, we notice these songs are slower than they should be. Ed Udhus’ marching drums broil through the fuller melodies of ‘A Long Way Down’. “I hate the drugs on my nightstand” speaks to a notion many with any kind of affliction have. This love-hate relationship with yourself, your mentality, and your physical being can sometimes be exhausting, and that phrase encapsulates it perfectly. The toned-down pacing of the song throws us slightly but as Tabatabaee addresses the troops with a battle cry style rap section.
Building this never say die energy becomes conflicted with ‘Homesick For Hope’. A soul at the end of their rope begging for entrance into heaven sees this message become twisted into bitterness. Set against deeper melodies, ‘Homesick For Hope’ is deliciously dark and savage with its displeasure towards life in that moment. Known for their genre bending, Zebrahead unite people within their misery and draws them into a breakdown laced with deep heavy metal influences making for a head turning moment.
What can be said for III is that it is a cohesive unit. Each song unintentionally feeds into the next like an aural human centipede. The metal injected riffs from Dan Palmer spatter through ‘Out Of Time’. The churning of a mental state on the precipice of breakdown is reflected throughout the song. “I could use a reason to fight the pain inside my head” cuts through the clouded judgment, seeking some form of clarity for why we feel the way we do. An anthemic chorus brings together those stewing in misfortune, reminding them misery loves company.
While these songs and their subject matter is incredibly dark, there is a lot of positivity to be taken from III. Reflecting on the pandemic period, a lot of souls became lost within their self-destruction. When someone enters a pattern of cruelty towards themselves, there comes a moment where we know we need to be saved. III serves as that moment of clarity. Looking for salvation from themselves. While III wallows in the bereft, it couldn’t have come at a better time. Coming through the other side of their own turmoil with the line-up change, Zebrahead extend a lifeline to those seeking solace.