Split Personality, a rousing split release from D.C.'s Beatville, brings together two promising young bands from the area,
Gamma Rays and High School Hellcats, both of whom contribute five songs. With a lively, melody-driven punk revivalist sound,
the Gamma Rays' touchstones include
the Ramones and
Descendents, and also bear a hooky resemblance to
Screeching Weasel. The succinct and sugary, yet equally hard-hitting and raucous "Bleeding Heart" is a highlight, as is the rapid-fire "Sell Your Soul," which grafts melody onto a vintage hardcore gait. For their part, the High School Hellcats deserve props for bringing back the band theme song. "High School Hellcats" introduces the Baltmore band's accelerated, snotty punk. Vocalist/guitarist
Melissa rants and raves over the relentless bottom end (
the Ramones' force is strong here, too), and her mates chime in with bratty background vocals that suggest what it might sound like if
Rizzo and her Pink Ladies started a tough rock band. Things just get more ragged as the Hellcats' songs play out; "I Wish I Was a Robot" and "Double Down" fly off the page in full color -- they're like pulp fiction novels given life by punk rhythms.