The Villaintinos have bared their teeth on Come And Get It, a searing ode to punk that serves as the Columbus quartet’s latest EP.
The four-track Come And Get It opens with the brimming grunge energy of Hands Tied, with vocalist Leah Hanson setting the tone with an infectiously sneering timbre.
Helped along by the thunderous drum work of Matt Grover, the EP opener coasts on a cathartically noisy attitude, while still feeling altogether clean and pristinely produced.
The band achieves this feat through a hook-driven structure and brisk runtime, in what Hanson likened to a “Roman candle [that] burns hot and fast” in a press statement.
Hanson’s versatility as a vocalist shines brightest on second track Come Closer, which retains the garage energy The Villaintinos are known for while infusing softer elements.
Here, Hanson flits between pop-punk whine and angelic balladary, at times dipping into a country-rock twang. These sounds coalesce around the rapid-fire strums of guitarist Todd Novak, whose pulsating handiwork provides an engaging throughline.
The track sees Hanson reclaim what’s rightfully hers, singing braggadociously of “hiding right in plain sight” before an instrumental explosion of twangy riffs closes out her blistering manifesto.
The willfully antagonistic attitude reaches its climax on penultimate track Bitch, a riotous take on The Rolling Stones’ 1971 track of the same name.
Bringing a welcome serving of grit to the original, The Villaintinos deliver on the staples of classic rock and roll without sacrificing their own distinct sound.
The Stones’ swagger is replaced by the four-piece’s more affronting approach to the genre, a sound only refined by Hanson’s howling vocal performance.
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“We love The Stones and really wanted to make this song work for us,” Grover explained in a press statement. The Villaintinos culminate their efforts on the fittingly-titled EP closer Irish Goodbye, which marks the project’s grungiest effort yet.
Here, Hanson amps up the ferocity, with the assist of raucous instrumentation, for a searing recount on the time we waste on futile relationships.
With its incisive lyricism, adrenaline-loaded production and clear mastery of punk rock, Irish Goodbye is a worthy conclusion to the note-perfect EP that is Come And Get It. The project serves as the follow-up to the band’s self-titled debut, which arrived in 2020.
Listen to The Villaintinos’ new EP Come And Get It below.
