At the Drive-In

This Station Is Non-Operational (Fearless)

“If you’re musically [inclined], you can’t be from Texas and not be influenced by At the Drive-In’s live shows,” posits Cory Kilduff, the throat behind Austin hardcore heavies the Rise. “I think that’s what’s wrong with generations of younger kids who never got to see them. They don’t understand what a live show can be.” Though their life was too short, At the Drive-In set a concrete footprint in today’s music with frenetic shows, a song spread covering emo and hardcore, and lyrics battling girlfriends and the Mexican government. New Fearless anthology This Station Is Non-Operational maps out the path taken by the seminal El Paso quintet, from a time when Cedric Bixlar-Zavala was a little less angry (“Fahrenheit,” “Picket Fence Cartel”) right to the explosive end. Truly an anthology, This Station‘s tracks were handpicked by the band: a collection of favorites, covers (the Smiths’ “This Night Has Opened My Eyes” and Pink Floyd’s “Take up Thy Stethoscope and Walk”), and unreleased tracks. Missing only “Invalid Litter Dept.,” but making up for it on the short companion DVD, This Station is both history tome for a younger generation and a yearbook for those who lived it. ****

This article appears in July 15 • 2005.

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