Platte River Killers

It's fun to be miserable — and when that's translated into music, it can come out like Morrissey or it can come out like the Platte River Killers. The quartet has become a staple of the local metal scene, mostly because of its blend of hearty, technically intricate metalcore and...

By Jason Heller

July 15, 2010

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It's fun to be miserable — and when that's translated into music, it can come out like Morrissey or it can come out like the Platte River Killers. The quartet has become a staple of the local metal scene, mostly because of its blend of hearty, technically intricate metalcore and grinding yet melodic rock. Its new EP, Every Stone, has a hefty dark side — "Twenty Twelve" and "Shotgun" being prime examples of the band's Deftones-meets-Lamb of God assault — but there are moments of triumph and even humor in the five-song blitzkrieg, particularly in "Show Em Your Ugly Side Jesus," in which frontman Aaron Szlachetka screams, "Cast the blame, that's the way we roll!" True, the Killers have angst to spare, but Every Stone feels more like a healthy, good-hearted purge than a wallow in the emo muck.

Jason Heller is a staff writer at Westword. He's the author of the book Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded (Melville House/Penguin Random House), and has contributed to the New Yorker, The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork and NPR.org. His work has won a Hugo Award and a Colorado Press Association Award.

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