Scissorfight - New Hampshire
2000 Tortuga Records

Track Listing:
1. Granite State Destroyer
2. The Ballad of Jacco Macacco
3. Injection Site
4. Billy Jack Attack
5. Lamprey River
6. Cycloptic Skull
7. Roman Boxing Glove
8. The Gruesome Death of Edward Teach
9. Musk Ox
10. Mountain Man Boogie
11. Dead Thunderbird

Line-Up:
Vocals:  Ironlung
Guitar:  Geezum H. Crow
Bass:  Jarvis
Drums:  Kevin J. Strongbow

Website:  www.scissorfight.net

Shev's Rating:  B-
Average Album Rating:  B-

Shev's Review:
The third full-length by these New Hampshire natives, "New Hampshire" almost stands as a turning point for Scissorfight.  Originally they had leaned towards an aggressive sludge/stoner sound with large amounts of hardcore thrown in for good measure.  Here they release an album in somewhat of a different direction, still unmistakably Scissorfight, but letting the stoner and hardcore start to dominate their music.  In all honesty, this just doesn't quite measure up to their previous releases, nor releases following this one.  Kind of a shame as this album was named after my favorite state.

None the less, as can be expected Scissorfight churn out more mid-paced sludgy groove forcing all who hear to uncontrollably grab a beer and get in the pit.  The guitar and bass work well together and is typical of their bowel-dropping brilliance.  Drumming is standard issue, almost an afterthought in quite a few cases...but what really sets this album apart from it's previous brothers is the vocal work of Ironlung.  A talented vocalist in his chosen genre, it's obvious he isn't anywhere close to a plateau here as he sticks to a relatively clean, grumbly style tossed with throaty yelps, nasally howls, and pitch-shifted gurgles.  If there was ever a vocalist to compliment a skull-shattering riff, Ironlung would definitely be in the running.  Just listen to his impressive control and diversity in "Lamprey River" mixed with the rockabilly guitars.

Even though "New Hampshire" is Scissorfight's least attractive release (as of mid-2005, at least), this is certainly nothing to scoff at.  While the band seems to be searching for some kind of lost groove, they can still crank.  The bass here is a fine example of how, when used correctly and not just adding a little depth to the drums, it can make even sub-par material all the better.  Just the bass lines in "Billy Jack Attack" alone can cause loss of bladder control.  On top of that, Scissorfight doesn't throw in any filler.  There's not a bad song on here, but most notable are the likes of "Granite State Destroyer", "Billy Jack Attack", "Musk Ox", "Mountain Man Boogie", and "Dead Thunderbird".  Don't kick off your collection of Scissorfight with "New Hampshire", but also don't avoid it once you pick up everything else.  To quote Ironlung himself, "It's not rock till you piss you pants!"

Yeah, that's not a typo.
Shev's Rating:  B-

Also be sure to read:
Scissorfight - Guaranteed Kill by Shev
Scissorfight - Mantrapping For Sport And Profit by Shev