I Walk The Line – Black Wave Rising

Releasedate: 25-04-2008; Label: Rookie/Cargo
By: Nina Mende

Hailing from Helsinki, Finland, I Walk The Line took their name from the legendary Johnny Cash, feeling it described the honest straightforward nature of the punk rock they played – back in 2003, the Man In Black was still very much alive and only a cult figure in the Finnish punk rock scene and there was no hit movie made about him yet!
Apart from dressing all in black, there is little else that nods to the classic country icon. The band plays dark resonant, melodic, edgy punk, pulling from such influences as Rocket From The Crypt, The Clash, Devo, Adolescents, Murder City Devils, Wipers, The Cure… the list could go on and on but IWTL are all about listening to everybody and everything with an open mind and doing things their own way no matter what!

I Walk The Line started as a side-project from the members’ other bands at the time, Wasted and Manifesto Jukebox. IWTL quickly established themselves as a local must-see live act, bringing together fans of punk, hardcore and rock whenever they played. The band released their debut album Badlands on Combat Rock Industry / Boss Tuneage in 2004 and embarked on several tours of Germany and the UK, introducing the band to a wider international audience.

Now they release their third album “Black Wave Rising”. It is a very rocking album with catchy songs. The easy melodies and lyrics have the songs getting stuck in your head very easily. The beginning of the first song reminds of The Sounds melody wise, but also of The Generators and bands like that. The eleven new songs are very danceable and make you move. The album “Black Wave Rising” is punk rock of its finest, very active and energetic music, very intoxicating. I wonder how they are live. Anyways, the new album, without getting into detail of each song, is great punk rock which definitely makes you move and sing along. A great album, it’s lots of fun listening to it, so go get it.

Links:
I Walk The Line MySpace
I Walk The Line Official