Panic Attack! – Don’t Stop

Norwegian (hailing from the town of Stavanger) hardcore/metal quartet Panic Attack! recently released its new release entitled Don’t Stop via Music-Records! As their moniker might suggest, Panic Attack! represents lives of bipolar depression, confusion, anger, substance abuse, suicidal attempts & belief that we can get ourselves to a better place. The band currently consists of Edvard Andreas Feed (Guitars), Per Oskar Storholm (Bass), Alf Morten Bjørnsen (Drums) & David Leigh Pickett (Vocals). I’ve read somewhere that the members of Panic Attack! have backgrounds in punk, black-metal, jazz and even stand up- comedy (!), and I think you can easily hear that by listening to their latest release!

This debut full-length Don’t Stop contains 13 fast songs, deeply rooted in heavy metal with additional thrash/hardcore, punk & crust elements. The production is crispy and raw, done in a typical old-school classic raw metal sound. All instruments are equally present in the overall sound picture, and it’s very listenable and easy to approach. Thus, one can clearly hear the lyrical content, where David Leigh Pickett (the lead vocalist and lyricist is Bi-polar Type 1, ADD/ADHD and has battled drug addiction & suicide most of his life) does an awesome and honest job taking on vocal duties. The song lyrics stay true to that journey and the music stays true to the name Panic Attack!

The album opener is the song called “Talking Bag”, being a song about believing in yourself & finding your own way. The darkness can seem thick & endless, but you can see the way by becoming your own light. This track, like more or less the rest of the album, is punchy, noisy and above everything, delivered with convinction and determination.

Apart from this aforementioned opening track of the album, my favourite tracks are, a self-titled “Don’t Stop”, then “Satan is Waitain” and the Off! cover track called “Paniac Attack”, which also happens to be the name of this band. Another superb track is the one called “Meh (Stuck In This Town)”, make sure to watch the new official music video below, as it perfectly showcases the spirit of the band’s music by displaying crazy visuals and encompassing (not so) subtle nods to heavy metal history. I’ll briefly also mentioned second cover of what seems to be their personal favourites, the band Off! And their classic “Black Thoughts”.

Some of the tracks begin with a few spoken-word vocals, like this awesome track called “Tweeker” where they talk about depression, anger and similar subjects. At least one can say that they’re not afraid to expose themselves, for not being afraid to be vulnerable, and for displaying their inner demons to the rest of the world. I applaud them for being brave enough to cover the subjects and phenomena that are very common in our modern society, yet not many dare to talk about it.

I would not go that far as to call Don’t Stop for being the most innovative nor groundbreaking record of our generation, but I can frankly say that it breathes some much needed new life to heavy metal by being lively, energetic and at times, downright frantic. Once again; the music of Paniac Attack! is for people on the edge of life & death. There’s no tricks, no fluff, just sonic punches to your face and ditto sonic attacks on your brain!

Esp. recommended for fans of; Body Count, Black Flag, Motörhead, OFF!, Bastardogs, Bewitcher, Suicidal Tendencies and similar hardcore, thrash & speed-crush acts. For additional info go to https://panicattack2.bandcamp.com/album/holding-on