One of the Best of 2006!

Parts and Labor are a talented bunch with a unique take on "art/noise/post-punk/math" or whatever the kids are calling it today. They bridge the gap between all-out noise rock and punk rock, making this an enjoyable and more accessible sound than some other bands in the genre. The guys in the band also are genuine...they actually take action with their politics and ethics, rather than just posturing. Download this entire album, and order some others from their website..you won't be disappointed.

Parts & Labor’s Stay Afraid is a clamorous piece of noise rock brilliance. Three years since their collaboration with vocalist Tyondai Braxton, Parts & Labor finally seem sound. Bassist BJ Warshaw and keyboard player Dan Friel expand their punk palate without getting too experimental. Drummer Christopher R. Weingarten makes his recording debut with the band, providing more than enough punch and kick for these 10 songs. Slamming album opener “A Great Divide” is a nervy horsewhip of chintzy electronics and blistering guitars, setting the album’s anxious pace at full throttle. “Drastic Measures” and “New Buildings” build upon that tenacity without repetition while echoing bits of classic Hüsker Dü. “Repair” starts out like a soldier’s march with Weingarten’s quickening drum beats. Warshaw’s muddied vocals run to catch up to the build up of frenzied sound. Through it all, Warshaw’s lyrics showcase a nervous public, its support of excessive consumerism and its suspicions of the leaders at hand. Stay Afraid is loud and clear in its delivery. There’s no catch here. Parts & Labor sound pretty serious when it comes to making smart indie rock in 2006. – MacKenzie Wilson