LA area punk / power-pop band For Closure has released a new EP "No Condition" via Mindpower Records.

For Closure drummer/producer Wal Rashidi says, “No Condition” encapsulates much of what I love and seek in a song. And I can say this as someone who’s somewhat detached from it, as I didn’t have a hand in the songwriting, just the production.

It is equal parts bold and expressive in its outro, counterbalanced with intimate and sparse in its verses. The arpeggiated, glassy guitar tones we dialed in are an imperfect nod to the 1980s new wave/post-punk watery riffs emanating from the Roland Jazz Chorus amps in videos we grew up watching on MTV (or listening to early KROQ hits). Gizz’s (frontman Gizz Lazlo- Dr. Know, U.K. Subs, The Freeze, Dead Lazlo’s Place) legato vocals, delicately draped over my thunderous toms, recall bands like The Icicle Works, though they also possess the muscle and motivation of Samiam’s Jason Beebout.

I am satisfied with my mix of this song, probably because it happened so effortlessly. I love how the dozen-plus tracks of backing vocals neatly charted their course as they float amid the ether of the song, simultaneously transparent yet plenty apparent. Luis’s tight, crunchy guitar riffing in the bridge eventually yields to a full-throttle send of the outro, with the densely-layered choir repeatedly exclaiming “noooo!” as I hammer quarter notes on the crash cymbal — it really thrusts this cut into an elevated stratum and provides the mashed-pedal drive it deserves, even if the lyrics state an emphatic opposition that, “I’m in no condition / to drive you all the way home!”

What makes it even more impressive was watching Gizz on the other side of the glass, in the vocal booth at the recording studio — the eponymous, succinctly-monikered Studio — in Redlands, California, absolutely nailing it all in one take. I’m nearly sure I exclaimed a stunned “wow” as the hair rose on my arms (I have hairy arms, too). I could somehow still sense the sweet and mildly-spiced waft of a Djarum Special clove cigarette he had just dusted off mere minutes before nailing this cut, quizzically piercing its way through the double-paned window into the control room (“I see you walking through / that crowded, smoky room”). While I already knew Gizz was highly competent at his craft, I didn’t realize Gizz could be unassailably stellar in the studio. (Given this is my first album as a solo producer, perhaps I was just gifted a stroke of beginner’s luck?)

I think “No Condition” could resonate with just about anyone listening. It’s beautiful, powerful and might serve as the flagship track on this forthcoming full-length album by For Closure. I also hope that “No Condition” encapsulates much of what you love and seek in a song."

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For Closure began as a simple studio project, a brief opportunity to relay some finality for multi-decade veterans hailing from the punk rock scenes of the Los Angeles County suburbs, who had desired a last hurrah before they closed shop on their previous bands. But what arose from a “goodbye” project was an assortment of compositions so compelling and novel, there was a change of heart in closing the book on the past and instead, an excitement brewing about the future.

Fronted by vocalist Gizz Lazlo—whose prior contributions include Dr. Know, U.K. Subs, The Freeze and his namesake, Dead Lazlo’s Place, plus continued memberships in a bevy of bands too numerous to detail—the ensemble’s material stems from a pairing of songwriters Lazlo and Luis Estefania (F.Y.P., Rhythm Collision, Buford), who most recently were together in longtime San Fernando Valley-based outfit For Sale. The dissolution of For Sale left Lazlo and Estefania with a backlog of yet-unrecorded material and a decision to continue establishing their songwriting partnership via a new outlet—hence, For Closure.

Armed with a batch of songs, polished and perfected for tracking, Lazlo and Estefania entered the recording studio named Studio in Redlands, California with producer/drummer Wal Rashidi (Jr. Juggernaut, Revolution Mother, Turning Violet) in the summer of 2022 to begin the sessions that would ultimately sprout the band’s first single, “Carousel,” to be released via Mindpower Records. This fruitful batch of material led to a second session in winter 2023, to complete the band’s forthcoming debut full-length album, to be released in 2024.

For Closure has since moved its material from studio to stage, as it made its live debut this past fall, via shows all over Southern California, which also feature guitarist Marc Maxey (Sloth Fist, The Killing Flame, Justice League) and bassist Steve Wilenkin (Life in a Burn Clinic, Dead Man’s Life, IDK).

What launched as an exercise in finality is now only the beginning of this new musical collective. It’s time for For Closure’s grand opening.