Dillinger Escape Plan

Precise, rigorous and artfully plotted, Irony Is A Dead Scene - the Epitaph debut from New Jersey's DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN -- is perhaps best described as the sonic equivalent of the syndicated television program, "World's Scariest Police Chases." An action packed, arresting amalgam of explosive hardcore, skillful speed metal and trippy jazz, Irony may only clock in at eighteen minutes, but the EP has two album's worth of hair-raising tempo changes. Hearing it conjures up exhilarating and frightening visions of a primer-spotted '81 Chevy Malibu dragging a sparking tailpipe while darting in and out of five lanes on the Jersey Turnpike at 90 miles an hour.

With that in mind, it's little surprise that the Garden State's noisecore specialists DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN -- currently comprised of guitaristis Ben Weinman and Brian Benoit, bassist Liam Wilson and drummer Chris Pennie -- have become a leading force in the world of extreme music in just a few short years. Propelled by tremendous technique and a tireless work ethic, the band's first album, 1999's Calculating Infinity (Relapse), became an underground success soon after it dropped.

Scoring an early fan in Mike Patton, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN hit the road that year to support his band Mr. Bungle. Three years later - following the 2000 expanded reissue of DILLINGERS's original self-titled record (Now Or Never) and the departure of their original vocalist -- the former Faith No More frontman now ups his D.E.P. endorsement by lending his careening pipes to the long-anticipated Irony Is A Dead Scene.

If the introductory track on Irony, "Hollywood Squares," seems reckless at first, a closer listen reveals a meticulous grindcore craftsmanship. Fusing a number of unpredictable segments together with Patton's indescribable utterances, the song yields an awesome, mind-blowing result. Elsewhere, brave experimentalism envelopes "Pig Latin," a number that opens to headfuck atmospherics before shredding into enthralling chunks of punk/metal and landing back in the same trippy environs where it began.

Defying categorization on Irony, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN breeds a complex form of music that hints at acts as diverse as the Jesus Lizard, Mahavishnu Orchestra, and System Of A Down while remaining it's own uniquely intense beast. And speaking of System, just this past Spring as the Escape Plan announced their new deal with the trailblazing Epitaph label, that band went so far as to tap the D.E.P. for an opening slot on their sold-out 30-date European concert trek. Met with an overwhelming response from overseas audiences, word promptly spread throughout the U.K. about THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN. The outfit was subsequently invited to perform on the main stage at this Summer's prestigious Reading and Leeds festivals.

"I'm the best you've ever had," barks Patton on "When Good Dogs Do Bad Things," as the DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN explodes beside him. And judging by the group's ever-swelling following, he could be right. Still, Pennie's drumming is unstoppable and perfectly timed here, while Weinman and Benoit's acrobatic guitar interplay astounds. Hypnotizing and volatile, the track builds to a frantic peak. Then like a pin in a balloon, the band escorts the once "Epic" showman into a dreamlike abyss before resuming the intense assault.

Much like their home state, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN's music balances brutality and beauty. And just like those scary police chases, Irony Is A Dead Scene is quite a ride.