By Kate Gamble
We'd like to start off by saying, "Thank you, Workhorse III." It's pretty refreshing to hear some hard rock featuring decent musicians that know how to play their instruments. In case you're not familiar, Workhorse III is fronted by guitarist and singer Lisa Flynn with bassist, Brian Blunker and drummer, Eric Perfect. A local supergroup, Flynn and Blunker played together previously in the band, LisaChristSuperstar and Perfect's resume features Limecell and Rancid Vat.
What's Workhorse III got to offer? It's hands-down a combination of rock, punk and grunge. Flynn's vocals are similar to Courtney Love's of Hole, but Flynn is a bit more raw and reckless-not just in the sound of her voice, but in her playing too. She's growls, she shouts and she rocks. Not only can she sing, but she can hold her own on guitar well enough, playing heavy rhythm and hard leads.
The production on the album is fitting as it sounds like it was recorded in your mom's basement. It matches the tone of the band. Surprisingly enough, considering this, one of the joys of the album is being able to hear each instrument fairly clearly. It's all there-Flynn yelling out gruff lyrics and abusing her guitar, Blunker laying down fat bass lines and Perfect hammering it all out on his drums and keeping rhythm.
While the entire album is unyieldingly rough, it seems to steadily become more punk, more vulgar and more relentless as it progresses. The Workhorse III opens with "Let it begin" and right away you know that you're in for some corrosive, invigorating rock- if not through the sound, then certainly through the lyrics. Don't stop there though. On "Die Tonight" Flynn and crew shout, "Oh! Yeah! Right! I'm gonna get high tonight. Oh! Yeah! Right! I'm gonna die tonight." Sure, the lyrics might be a little on the simple side, but punk never claimed to be complicated. Further along on the album, the song "Infect the Masses" stands out with crude lyrics and cruder guitar. The last track, "What You Wanted" is a little bit slower, but still just as crass, offering variety and serving its purpose as a good closer to the album. After listening to the self-titled CD in its entirety, one thing becomes obvious: Workhorse III isn't messing around. With a complete disregard of all of the bubbly pop that's been topping the charts recently, they seem to remain undaunted.
Additionally, check out their live video featured on their MySpace, from a show last August at The Note in West Chester. Standing next to a towering Blunker, the petite Flynn, at first, looks like a little girl with an oversized guitar in her hands. Then she starts rocking riffs and opens her mouth to reveal a whole lot of attitude.
If you haven't picked up this album yet, you really might want to consider adding it to your collection, some where between Garbage and the Runaways.
