White Reaper stretches their sound in boldly diverse new directions on 'Asking For A Ride'

Originally published by Alt Citizen

If any criticism could be levied against White Reaper it's that the band is consistent, nearly to a fault. Three LPs of increasingly adept power-pop with a scruffy, punk rock attitude helped to establish the potently irresistible White Reaper formula, a formula that earned the band high-profile touring spots with long-running alternative rock standard-bearers such as Spoon and Pearl Jam. Seeking to shed any pre-conceived notions about their overall artistic integrity and refute any whispered allegations of selling out, or at the very least simply to stretch in new directions, White Reaper have put together their fourth LP, one that challenges preconceptions while still making plenty of room for the high-energy guitar heroics that the band has made their modus operandi. Asking For A Ride has White Reaper taking measured chances with their sound, expanding into new styles while retaining their grinning bad boy enthusiasm and refreshingly complex songwriting.

From the opening notes it's readily apparent that Asking For A Ride is looking to bust the White Reaper sound wide open with a harder edge and a darker tone that's more aggressive than anything the band has put to record before. The one-two punch of the title track and follow-up, "Bozo," effectively sandblasts the pop-rock sheen clean off while maintaining their hooky, sing-along sensibilities. "Asking For A Ride" launches forward at a breakneck, punk rock cadence powered by muscular, classic heavy metal riffs. It's a head-on collision between Black Flag and Black Sabbath, topped off with a colossal breakdown guaranteed to whip any crowd into a seething mosh of uninhibited humanity. White Reaper's reverence for classic, heavier sounds crops up throughout the album, injected with soaring, anthemic vocals on "Bozo" and even dipping a toe into spaghetti western Thin Lizzy worship on the widescreen hardcore western, "Funny Farm." The effect can be a little jarring, especially considering the fact that White Reaper has long played the role of good-time party boys, but with the meteoric rise of hardcore-lite acts such as Turnstile it makes good sense for White Reaper to experiment with harder sounds as the band's writing always espoused heavier themes and darker shades beneath the brilliantly upbeat instrumentation.

This trend continues throughout the album even as the band simmers down closer to their usual comfort zone, but this opening salvo serves to redefine White Reaper without completely abandoning their power-pop roots. Perhaps the most traditionally 'White Reaper' track on the album, "Fog Machine" sits neatly beside the band's earlier hits "Sheila" and "Judy French" as an addictively energetic rock n roll track packed to the bursting with explosive guitar heroics and a sing-along hook big enough to reel in even the most jaded listeners. "Pink Slip" takes this one step further, rolling in new concepts including semi-rapped vocals alongside cinematic keys and huge riffs with a tacit acknowledgement of potentially dubious late-blooming innovations on the hook, "hard to believe us when we grow up so slow". "Pink Slip" may not be White Reaper's best track but it's absolutely no slouch, either. A perfect example of the the band's past and present coexisting, and perhaps even a glimpse into a possible future.

White Reaper's trademark complex lyricism is in fine form, weaving heady tales of youth and young manhood with compelling instrumentals into blue-collar poetic expression that remains just outside blanket generality. These are stories that embrace universal emotions but are constructed in a manner that cleverly sequesters true narratives behind deeply personal meanings and situations that run parallel to one's own but never intersect. It's this intentionally crafted and meticulously maintained emotional buffer zone that makes White Reaper's songwriting so compellingly enigmatic. "Heaven Or Not" is a standout as the band goes full bore into ballad mode, replete with chiming guitars and thick wall of analog synth seemingly teleported from the pivotal scene of an alternate reality John Hughes coming-of-age drama. While the structure of the track's prose is relatively simple, creative use of religious imagery both Christian and pagan loads a lyrical construct of hopeless finality with a plea for help from any who would answer, returned in obligation as Mother Mary takes your hand, but not because she wants to.

Emotions are cranked fully to 11 by the time "Heaven Or Not" dovetails into the similarly emotive "Crawlspace," positioning the pair of tracks as the antithesis to the back-to-back roughneck posturing of "Asking For A Ride" and "Bozo" at the top of the tracklist. "Crawlspace" doesn't wallow in the feels, quickly flipping a breakup narrative on it's head with a malleable opening hook "we're diggin in to fall apart, you know me well, you have my heart, so I'll send you my love" carried on an athletic keyboard riff reminiscent of and channeling similar post-relationship energy as ? & The Mysterians 1966 hit "96 Tears."

Two tracks in particular stand out as the biggest departures from the standard White Reaper sound, the first of which comes early in the tracklist, abruptly interrupting the pedal-to-the-metal flow of the proceeding songs. "Getting into Trouble w/ the Boss" is comprised of flat, trebly production punctuated a thick rhythm section not unlike Billy Squier's Don't Say No accented with a chilling new wave guitar riff influenced by Andy Gill's iconic Gang Of Four fretwork. Pulling reference points that range from the top of the charts to the most shadowy corners of the underground proves that White Reaper's well of influence runs deeper than ever, and they're conformable existing in both worlds without damaging their reputations in either. Album closer, "Pages," features an extended intro centered on acoustic guitar, an instrument rarely featured so prominently, if at all, in the mix of a White Reaper track. There's a casual approachability to "Pages" as the lyrics wax about leaving behind a period of relational turbulence by simply deleting any reference to past complications. As in tearing pages from a diary, the actual words may be gone but the gaps in the binding reveal the greater story of a void that can be filled with loose-leaf but never properly re-bound to the whole. The mellow vibe doesn't last long before White Reaper is back on the amps, powering through the remainder of the track with electric aplomb and a forward facing sense of positive determination.

Asking For A Ride is a bold album and the "new" White Reaper sound is varied and exciting. Not every track perfectly sticks the landing, but those that do are new classics in the band's repertoire. If anything, it goes to prove that White Reaper is in it for the long haul, and there's plenty of fuel left in the tank.

Stream Asking For A Ride on Spotify and follow White Reaper on Instagram.

2023 Tour Dates

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Tue, FEB 7, 2023
The Burl - Lexington, KY

Thu, FEB 9, 2023
Hi-Fi - Indianapolis, IN

Fri, FEB 10, 2023
Newport Music Hall - Columbus, OH

Sat, FEB 11, 2023
Delmar Hall - Saint Louis, MO

Mon, FEB 13, 2023
Houston Warehouse Studios - Houston, TX

Tue, FEB 14, 2023
Scoot Inn - Austin, TX

Wed, FEB 15, 2023
Granada Theater - Dallas, TX

Fri, FEB 17, 2023
Launchpad - Albuquerque, NM

Sat, FEB 18, 2023
Crescent Ballroom - Phoenix, AZ

Sun, FEB 19, 2023
Music Box - San Diego, CA

Tue, FEB 21, 2023
The Fonda Theatre - Los Angeles, CA

Wed, FEB 22, 2023
August Hall - San Francisco, CA

Fri, FEB 24, 2023
Hawthorne Theatre - Portland, OR

Sat, FEB 25, 2023
The Crocodile - Seattle, WA

Sun, FEB 26, 2023
Rickshaw Theatre - Vancouver, Canada

Thu, MAR 2, 2023
Summit Music Hall - Denver, CO

Fri, MAR 3, 2023
Waiting Room Lounge - Omaha, NE

Sat, MAR 4, 2023
Madrid Theatre - Kansas City, MO

Mon, MAR 6, 2023
Woolys - Des Moines, IA

Tue, MAR 7, 2023
Majestic Theatre - Madison, WI

Wed, MAR 8, 2023
Saint Andrews Hall - Detroit, MI

Fri, MAR 10, 2023
Metro Chicago - Chicago, IL

Sat, MAR 11, 2023
Beachland Ballroom & Tavern - Cleveland, OH

Sun, MAR 12, 2023
Mr Small's Theatre - Millvale, PA

Tue, MAR 14, 2023
The Opera House - Toronto, Canada

Fri, MAR 17, 2023
Irving Plaza - New York, NY

Sat, MAR 18, 2023
Underground Arts - Philadelphia, PA

Sun, MAR 19, 2023
Royale - Boston, MA

Wed, MAR 22, 2023
Cat's Cradle - Carrboro, NC

Thu, MAR 23, 2023
Hell at The Masquerade - Atlanta, GA

Fri, MAR 24, 2023
The Basement East - Nashville, TN

Sat, MAR 25, 2023
Headliners Music Hall - Louisville, KY