Canon in Miniature #181

Fugazi Margin Walker

1989; Dischord

The second EP in a series always gets the shit end of the stick. Well, not always, but by and large if that first EP is considered a classic then there’s a second EP that’s lurking well in its shadow simply by virtue of being released second. No one cares about Feed Me With Your Kiss when You Made Me Realize is around. Lazy Line Painter Jane is forever kept down by Dog on Wheels. Nervous Breakdown is considered a classic of its sub-genre, Jealous Again is little more than an afterthought. Not to say that in any of these cases the second EP deserves to overtake its predecessor, but it’s a pattern that emerges when you look into these things. So while I’m not shocked that Margin Walker is stuck in the long shadow of Fugazi’s first EP nor am I advocating that it should be the one people remember if they’ve only got room for one Fugazi EP in their hearts, I am quite surprised at just how much better it is than its red-headed stepchild status would suggest. It’s not quite as good as Fugazi or Repeater, and being sandwiched between those two is probably the worst thing that could happen to an EP really, but it’s definitely got as high a batting average as any CD EP of this era, and seeing it get so badly lost in the shuffle is a bit disheartening.

In reality, the biggest crime that Margin Walker commits is not having any one song to rival anything from the troika of “Waiting Room,” “Suggestion” and “Glue Man.” The material here is very good, but none of it is god-level which shouldn’t hurt the EP as much as it seems to, but when you’re essentially forced to compare these 6 songs to the 7 on Fugazi – keeping in mind that I’m all but certain that 90% of the people reading this were introduced to those EPs in the form of 13 Songs – it’s hard to argue that these are better, or even close to the same level. “Margin Walker” and “And the Same” come close, especially the latter with its insistent bass line and huge chorus, but the rest of the EP, while still very good (well except for the just OK “Promises” and yes I know I’m going to hell for holding that opinion but whatever) isn’t operating on near the same level. “Burning Too” (not a sequel to “Burning”) isn’t quite as anthemic as it thinks it is, but it’s still got a chorus that most post-hardcore bands would kill for. “Provisional” seems like a great set of verses in search of a chorus that never quite comes, making the track feel incomplete even as it hits those verse sections out of the park. “Lockdown” is a bit of a dark-horse in the discussion; I’m a big fan of that stuttering guitar pattern and the track’s nervous energy but not without realizing just how little there really is to it in toto. And “Promises”…yeah, I know you all love it but it’s about a minute too long and doesn’t have anywhere near enough interesting bits to justify the tedium. It’s an anticlimactic ending to what was a pretty damned great EP, and probably the one song on the whole of 13 Songs that I have no issues skipping over frequently.

I seem pretty down on this EP, but really I’m not. Like I said, this is a good release that had the bad fortune of being released after one ultimate classic EP and before an album that’s at times just as great. The well that it represents between those two really isn’t all that deep, but it’s a well nonetheless. The sad thing is that really all it would take to make Margin Walker into a minor classic is one absolutely great song, and while it’s got a few really, really good ones they’re all a step or two away from greatness. Maybe it’s just an after effect of its recording circumstances or just that they were saving their best material for Repeater – not as likely but possible – but Margin Walker fumbles ever so slightly, not to the point of it being a detriment to their output but enough that it’s noticeable and difficult to ignore. [8.0]