OC/DC was what we thought Osis was called… but as it turns out it’s a sound, a movement, a feeling! And if Boston’s Osis is the sound of that feeling then the feeling is raw, unbridled modern Punk Rawk raucousness. Or, if you want to be literal about it all, it’s the sound of an amalgamation of Orange County and DC Punk. Hence the “OC/DC”.
Regardless of how you want to categorize the band, there’s no denying the delightful way they construct a cacophonous noise that treads a Punky, Punkier and Punkiest soundscape across all these locales and also instills a fair amount of Post-Punk into it all (A cross between Amen and early Killing Joke is definitely lumped into that aspect). On their debut release, Katie Ghoulish (Vocals), Jordan Green (Guitar), Kevin Reddall (Drums) and Tom Scanlon (Bass) as Osis produce a furious collection of songs that’s a fusion styles and a compelling listen from start to finish.
“Flies” embodies that whole intro body word vomit vibe with a fuzzed out, fiery minute and (about) a half of fantastic Punk fury that’s a little Dead Kennedy’s, a little Misfits and a whole lotta fun. “Ambition Inhibition” begins amidst Green’s screaming guitar wails before a rambunctious Reddall enters undercutting Ghoulish’s inspired vocal runs while “Rapid Tofu” hints at even more depth with a start/stop verse/chorus/verse showdown with Ghoulish both exorcising and exercising a broad vocal range as Green and Scanlon battle with riffage and raucous rumbles.
“TV Rainbow” begins with some, ahem, ghoulish vocals from Ghoulish before flowing into a gnarly cacophony, “You Tell Me” is driven by Scanlon’s low end rumbling that gives way to an onslaught of Ghoulish’s screams, Green’s shreds and Reddall’s pummels and “Spy” is another that givers deeper insight into the Osis songwriting style with this dense, layered modern Punk Rawk experience.
The call and response during “It’s A Joke” is brilliant as a Killing Joke-like fuzz surrounds all with the phenomenal finale of “Theosis” waiting in the wings fusing Ghoulish’s frenetic vocal attack with the Scanlon/Reddall/Green new school Post-Punk aural attack.
The 8-song debut EP from Osis is out now and can be yours when you head here or to the stream below. For more from Osis, including where to catch them live like at O’Brien’s on January 12th with Revenge Bodies, The Woods and Adios Fatso (Tix here), hit the socials which are available to peruse by clicking here.