Urochromes - Night Bully EP

Pitchfork 78

Urochrome, singular, is the pigment that determines the color of urine. Urochromes, plural, are the pummeling duo from Western Massachusetts that released a handful of noisy hardcore platters over the past two years on underground punk labels. Frontman Jackie Jackieboy commands attention with his rabid, yammering screams. Dick Riddick is the shredder, responsible for solos and the band’s massive, gnarly guitar tone. Their drummer is (literally) a machine. On their first release, 2015’s Get in Line 4 Mental Decline, Jackie shout-sang about pissing in a bottle in his room, and then, pissing on his best friend. At a glance, that appears to be the ceiling for Urochromes—fun, volatile, rapid-fire scatological punk. With their new EP Night Bully, the duo and their robot drummer seek paths beyond hardcore’s aesthetic limitations.

The title track begins with crackling guitars mingling with deep, burbling electronics. Jackie forgoes a scream, focusing all his intensity into an aggressive, rhythmic whisper. The title “Night Bully” suggests intimidation, and there is definitely a posturing pushiness to its narrative. “I am the new muscle/Everyone needs a secret hustle,” Jackie notes, menacingly, before prodding further: “You should know that/You should really know that.” He repeatedly demands that you “be the uromancer”—someone who divines the future by reading urine bubbles. It’s the only overt reference to piss, and it’s puerile, yes, but it's also an incomprehensible, psychedelic call to action.

“Night Bully”’s overall tone isn’t unprecedented for Urochromes. The band had already been working with drum machines, and their obsession with industrial punk acts like Chrome came through loud and clear on their 2015 cover of “Chromosome Damage.” Jackie’s whispers take that aesthetic into new territory. The EP’s closing track, however, comes out of left field. The Northampton, Massachusetts-based coldwave duo Boy Harsher deliver a remix of “Night Bully” that renders the source material unrecognizable. A smooth, beatific synthesizer melody floats over a pulsing drone as a somber Jae Matthews croons the same words Jackie had just been aggressively whispering. It’s a wholly unexpected turn, but the synth pop jam shares Urochromes’ sonic DNA. There are familiar stabs of darkness that come through—demonic voices and the occasional squeal of guitar. It’s a welcome note to end on.

The record’s entire A-side, by contrast, shows Urochromes at the height of their hardcore powers. Riddick’s hooks are polished on “Confront Ya,” and the drum machine ratchets up the urgency. Jackie ladles bile on his target—someone who boasts about finding success while outlining their plans to climb the ladder. “You want to crush me with your boot,” he observes before bellowing with disgust, “You want to move to L.A.!” Jackie’s frustration holds sway on “My Disposition”—his disposition, apparently, is that he always manages to blow a relationship before it even gets off the ground. That’s the nature of Night Bully—they’re frustrated, and they’re lashing out.

Urochromes’ new one is about 11 minutes long (if you don’t count the second Boy Harsher remix that’s offered as a digital bonus), and within those time constraints, they build an emotionally complex and sonically elaborate world. This chaotic, always-fluctuating, heavy music undercuts self-consciousness, bitterness, anger, and an unsettling self-confidence. It’s a record that easily lends itself to shoving or dancing (or, you know, both) before arriving at a shimmering, uncharacteristic come-down. Given how ambitious these 11 minutes are, it’s impossible to predict where they go from here. In an underground scene where guitar bands tend be one trick ponies, Urochromes’ unpredictability lends them a rare star quality.