Highly Irresponsible
Highly Irresponsible makes a strong case for familiar musicians finding a useful new combination. Better Lovers bring abrasive hardcore riffs, active drums and Greg Puciato's distinctive voice together with plenty of purpose. The album is forceful and tightly played. Its main limitation is that the individual ingredients remain more recognisable than the combined sound is surprising.
Lie Between The Lines gives the opening enough space to make the heavier arrival count. Its brief introductory setting leads into a substantial guitar attack, establishing a sound that is detailed without becoming overly neat. Your Misplaced Self then pushes much harder on speed, delivering its ideas in a short, concentrated burst.
A White Horse Covered In Blood adds a strong rock character to the abrasion. The jagged guitar parts and changing vocal delivery give the song more movement than a simple run of heavy riffs. Its swagger helps the familiar influences feel like useful material for a song rather than the whole reason to hear it.
The instrumental performance remains a major strength. Deliver Us From Life gives the guitars plenty of character, with bass and drums keeping the weight clear beneath them. Across the record, the production makes the playing substantial without hiding the sharper edges. Puciato's ability to move between different vocal sounds adds another level of activity.
At All Times offers the clearest change. The opening has a gentler, almost acoustic character before the melody develops into a broader grunge-influenced performance. It provides useful space inside the sequence, even if its more conventional rock direction is less distinctive than the best heavier material.
The larger reservation is variety. Much of the record stays close to the same abrasive framework, with changes in pace doing more work than major changes in style. That gives it consistency, but it also reduces the sense of discovery as the songs continue.
There is still considerable pleasure in hearing these parts fit together so well. Highly Irresponsible delivers strong guitar work, an engaging vocal performance and several memorable songs. It does not fully escape the identities behind it, but the quality of the playing makes that a manageable limitation.
