Album Review: No Trigger - 'Be Honest'

Boston’s No Trigger are back with their first recorded material in nearly five years, in the form of a new two song 7” titled “Be Honest”. It has been a long five years since the band dropped their fantastic full-length “Canyoneer”, and in that time there was a dark period where many wondered if the band would ever return from their hibernation. Much excitement has been built since the band announced they would be releasing this record with the band’s original line up through the ever-growing Mightier Than Sword Records, and as soon as you hear the opening guitar chord and front man Tom Rheault’s distinctive dirty vocals in the opening track “Commonwealth”, you know that the band aren’t fucking around, and that they haven’t lost their touch over the years.

The opening track is pretty much what you can expect to hear on a No Trigger record, and it wouldn’t have sounded out of place if it were slotted into “Canyoneer”. The song shows a strong thumbs up to the magical axeman that is Dan Yemin, especially in terms of Kid Dynamite and Lifetime. The second half of the song sounds like it could be taken from any Lifetime record, and that definitely isn’t a bad thing at all if you ask me.

The real surprise on this record is the second track, “Tooth”, which marks a bit of a stylistic change for the band, as it is without a doubt one of the poppiest tracks the band has produced to date. The opening guitar riff and some of the vocal phrasing reminds me of "Mutiny" era Set Your Goals, and shows Rheault showcasing his clean vocal abilities, rather than relying on the often yelled and strained approach as often seen on the previous releases. I can see some fans that really love “Canyoneer” being a bit thrown off by this track, but it has quickly become one of my favourite No Trigger tracks, and has made me excited for what the band will be releasing next year. This track alone is worthy of giving the record at least one listen.

The only disappointing thing about this release is that it’s only two songs long. Considering this is the first thing the band has released in nearly five years, it would have been fantastic if this record contained a few more tracks, but all this does is make me more excited to hear the band’s new full-length that they will be releasing sometime in 2011. The band will be touring Australia for the first time in January/February next year with Such Gold, so make sure you check that shit out if you have the opportunity.

1. Commonwealth

2. Tooth