Blacksalt | photo by Rocco Peditto | roccopeditto.com | courtesy of the artist

Last year, Philly’s Blacksalt “welcomed” us into their world of darkness with their debut EP Welcome. A year later, they’re picking up where they left off with a new, four song set they’re calling Rubix. With a better sounding mix and more varied, mature songwriting, it’s an improvement on all fronts.

On opening track “Welcome, spider”, Blacksalt toys with skittering hi-hats and arpeggiated guitar before launching into a heavy, mid-tempo rocker the likes of Smashing Pumpkins. Meanwhile, the title track rides a breakneck, sixteenth note groove and a double-stop guitar motif in the verses. “H1N1” is more of a slow burner, but it simultaneously possesses the most disturbing lyrics of the bunch, with references to the “darkness plague” and smashing “baby brains.”

Finally, closing track “Our Hands Apart” explodes with punk energy in its second half, but the best thing that these tracks have going for them is the vocal interplay between its two members, Adam Peditto and Beth Murphy. If you’ve been struggling to find your daily dose of darkness, maybe Blacksalt can help you see the light. Stream Rubix now below, via their their Bandcamp.