DIGGING STUFF UP: Pist.On - '$ell Out'

Staten Island's bitterest sneered this one out in 1999 shortly before taking a twenty year break

PIST.ON
’$ell Out’
Mayhem Records/Music For Nations

Originally released April 6, 1999 (US) / March 1, 1999 (Europe)

The wonderfully named Pist.On’s second album wasn’t exactly received with a bang at the time - if there’s any kind of commercial success to be remembered, in fact, one should report instead to their debut ‘Number One’, which even led them to be picked up by Atlantic, who reissued it and then promptly dropped the band, one of those typical major label moves that music history is unfortunately peppered with. True to their cynical sense of humour, the title of this follow-up is naturally a reference to the accusations levelled against them after having signed for Atlantic - a bitter joke that is further reinforced by stuff like frontman Henry Font holding up a copy of a book called ‘How To Write A Hit Song’ in the booklet’s photos, for example. Maybe this confrontational attitude put off some of their more po-faced fans at the time or something, because even though it wasn’t a huge hit, as it turns out, whether it was because of being fuelled by that frustration or whatever else, this has remained as their most consistent, timeless collection of songs to date.

It’s good to use that “to date”, because as some of you might be aware, Pist.On are back with 3/4 of this record’s line-up (bassist Val Ium is unfortunately absent, Jack Hanley taking her place since their official reactivation in 2015) and have finally released a comeback EP called ‘Cold World’ this year. It will be reissued next July 29th through M-Theory Audio in an expanded edition intitled ‘Cold World +’, and getting the promo for that is actually what inspired me to dig out this old companion from the shelf again (not that I don’t do it often without the need for any excuses, though), and once again experience the timelessness of these melodies, riffs and infectious songs.

Whether Henry really read that book he’s holding in the photo or not, in any case he clearly didn’t retain much, as there isn’t a clear instant “hit” in the eleven songs that make up ‘$ell Out’, but on the other hand, every single one of them offers both grit and melancholy in equal measure, a nice metallic low end-heavy rumble of the rhythm section where the vocal melodies are given ample space to develop in perhaps surprisingly emotional fashion. Sure, the tone is always one of bitterness and acerbity, sometimes delivered in an almost deliriously celebratory way. The chorus of ‘31 Degrees’, for instance, where Henry proclaims “I feel cold” repeatedly, has a similar effect to something like Type O Negative’s ‘Everyone I Love Is Dead’ - these people are rubbing in your face very clearly how miserable they are, but at the same time it’s exhilarating and you just want to just sing along loudly with them how cold you also feel or how everyone you love is also dead. But Henry knew how to be genuinely fragile too, both vocally and in terms of baring his soul - songs like ‘C’ or, most of all, the chilling, quiet/loud dynamics of closer ‘Waiting To Die’ are perfect examples of that. Through the various moods of the album, however, one thing remains, which is the supreme catchiness of the songs - opener ‘Suddenly Sober’ alone, with its engaging razor sharp guitarwork, is enough to wrap itself around your brain and commandeer it for hours.

Of course, Type O Negative weren’t used as just a random example up there. It wasn’t exactly what you’d call a “scene”, but Pist.On were part of that circle of friends and connection of the Drab Four that also included people like Life Of Agony, for instance, not that there is any particular kind of musical parallelism, but in terms of attitude and general outlook, it says a lot. Like, bassist Val Ium hilariously thanks Peter Steele on the booklet of ‘Number One’ for, among other things, but “especially", “not fucking me”. Speaking of Val, on those same liner notes she mentions that she was the one that named the band, and at the time she and Henry were generally regarded to be the core of Pist.On, so it remains to be seen how they

will fare without her, not to mention the fact that it’s now over twenty years later. The new EP is great and appears to be a step in the right direction to capture this rather unique vibe they had going, so we’ll see.

Even if Pist.On had never returned, however, both their albums (and the ‘Saves’ EP too, mind you) would have been already a worthy testament. Imagine Alice In Chains after years of living on Staten Island, only jamming with Life Of Agony and listening to Sabbath to pass the time, and you might get something close to this. Oh, and never finishing that book on how to write hit songs. Who needs that when you have true pathos, right?

Tracklist:
01. Suddenly Sober – 3:24
02. Rest – 4:24
03. 31 Degrees – 4:46
04. When I Go – 3:36
05. Low – 3:46
06. Someone – 4:10
07. C – 5:02
08. Need To Know – 4:41
09. New Car – 4:24
10. Square – 5:22
11. Waiting To Die – 4:17