But before we start to address the validity of comparisons to Fall Out Boy and the like, you can be rest assured that if indeed DEP's third full-length were to wholly crack the mainstream, you can expect to see one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse skirting the horizon very soon. For whatever experimenting or toning down is present on _Ire Works_, it remains a largely confrontational and acerbic slice of math-core, and the opening salvo of "Fix Your Face" and "Lurch" are drizzled in enough spastic rhythm-changes and fuzzed up, free jazz chops to underline this point quite vividly. "None Eye Gong", and "82588" likewise are brutal, vitriolic rants with Greg Puciato's seething shriek easily rubbishing any rumours of DEP mellowing out.

Nevertheless, there are a few songs that will likely prove to be bones of contention, and "Black Bubblegum" and "Milk Lizard" in particular could very easily become MTV2 favourites, if simply by virtue of the reverent manner in which they recall Faith No More's finest moments. Indeed, with Mike Patton's spectre looming over the band to varying degrees for years now, for DEP to produce a track boiling over with the subtle malevolence of "Dead as History" or "Mouth of Ghosts" shouldn't be nearly as inconceivable as some would make it out to be. And muted though these numbers may be, their quality is undeniable -- masterfully crafted and continually absorbing. If per chance they were to find their way on to mainstream music television, well then I honestly don't really give a fuck. If it means one less conveyer-belt pop song fouling the airwaves, more power to 'em.