Latest 7” from this much talked-about New York band. Haram are a very important band for a lot of reasons. Their singer’s perspective as an Arab is one that has been underrepresented in punk and punk-influenced music, and they’re willing to bring that perspective to bear on controversial, even taboo, topics like 9/11. The lyrics to the EPs title track are great, articulating how that event affected the singer as a child attending a Christian school outside New York. Haram’s words are worth pondering, but I wouldn’t give their strength as musicians short shrift. They’ve been a powerful band since they started, but they grow more adventurous with each release. Moments like when the title track winds down to a steady drum pulse and some abstract guitar noodles, or the swirling guitar lead that starts “Bomb in the Sky” are as great as anything on the many great records that Toxic State has released over the years. Haram is, without a doubt, one of the most important bands of this generation of punk, and if you aren’t following them closely, you’re doing it wrong.
