Police & Thieves step up their game a bit with the four-song Amor y Guerra 7" on Youngblood Records, with tighter songwriting and a decent live studio recording.

The band still provide the kind of shouted vocal, Dag Nasty-inspired, slightly melodic hardcore with a modern twist that appeared on their demo and previous 7", only now streamlined and fluid sounding. On Side A, the band get political and call out the Bush administration and Christian evangelicals not by name but by tactic; on "Exit Strategy" (your first hint), the band declare "instead you're leaving / a troubled legacy," while the line "they've blurred the line between god and country" is effectively repeated in "False Parades." Side B exhibits more of a personal struggle theme, with "...Like a Trainwreck" certainly analyzing communication and relationship like their forefathers in DN.

Amor y Guerra doesn't provide a wide breadth of entirely new ideas or sounds, but Police & Thieves are becoming more developed and able in their ways, adding stronger and more original elements with each passing release.

Exit Strategy

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Amor y Guerra