Megasus: A Lot of Menace in Just a Little Time
At just over five and a half minutes long, the gorgeously-packaged Menace of the Universe 5” from Providence, Rhode Island, bash and thrashers Megasus is over almost before it starts. Where their 2009 20 Buck Spin self-titled full-length offered a few minutes here and there of respite, on such a small vinyl, there’s barely time for the songs themselves, let alone a breather, so you’re in, you’re out, all of a sudden you have a black eye, and that’s it. Time is not wasted, either theoretically or practically, as Megasus up the intensity on both of the included tracks, “Menace of the Universe” and the b-side “Damned Hammer,” enough so that I wondered in my first time hearing it if I wasn’t listening at the wrong speed. I wasn’t. Megasus bring out the thrash and let it run roughshod all over Menace of the Universe.
The two songs, released via Brutal Panda Records, run 2:48 and 2:46, respectively. “Menace of the Universe” is a quick kick in the ass, guitarist Ryan Lesser’s tone reminding of Entombed and drummer Brian Gibson hitting a bright, punkish snare to accent the riff. Jason Kendall’s vocals are far back and similarly effected here as they were on the self-titled, but he screams maniacally on the first track, and is no less appropriate in doing so than he is the subtle, sub-psychedelic melody he throws in later on before Lesser’s solo brings the song to a close. Bassist Paul Lyons has more of a role to play on “Damned Hammer,” which is slower (still not as slow as some of the Megasus material was) and offers more room for him to run counter to Lesser’s riffing. The Motörheaded aspect of “Menace of the Universe” is all but gone from “Damned Hammer,” and Megasus show more of their doom side in the shorter track, still managing to keep the immediacy of the a-side, just cutting the pace.
Since Menace of the Universe is so short, the packaging and artwork are almost as much of a consideration as the music itself. Lesser, who also handled the art for the full-length, here presents a six-panel foldout, die-cut and kept in line with the winged-horse Megasus theme. In addition, the pressing of 500 is split in half, 250 copies coming with a silkscreened art print tied to “Menace of the Universe” and 250 with one for “Damned Hammer.” One hopes Megasus keep up the focus on the visual side of their presentation going into their next album, since they seem to have the means to make some really interesting moves with it on Menace of the Universe. However, even if you, like me, aren’t necessarily a vinyl hound, the two cuts are available for download from the band directly, and still sound pretty killer on their own.
That packaging is goddamn beautiful.