Split System – On The Edge / On The Loose

Saturday, February 15, 2025 | Records | Garage Punk

A new Split System release is always a major event here in the 12XU sphere even if it’s “just” another 7″. Speaking of which, while their LPs always strike me as their more substantial works making room for more intricate compositions and a greater sense of melancholy, their short-form artifacts are overflowing wells of delight in their own right, usually presenting a more straightforward version of their craft that just wants to rock out and no doubt works best on that particular format. And they keep it that way here as well, the a-side On The Edge being a forceful streamroller of a track built around a single rock’n’roll riff as old-fashioned as it’s ever gonna get, all of which would be kinda easy to shrug off if it weren’t for that absolutely unforgiving, vigorous and tight-as-fuck performance plus the always brilliant, heartfelt barking of vocalist Jackson Reid Briggs, coming across as equally defiant and vulnerable and adding an even greater sense of urgency to the tune. An equally simplistic and compelling counterpart is the flipside On The Lose, a faster, more uplifting track that perfectly balances out this neat little package.