The Silver Spring Penguin

Turn up the volume on your computers, people. Silver Spring’s very own No Compromise brings the power!

The former Terps — bassist Justin Fry, axman Jack Kwait-Blank, and William Bowen on the skins — are tall, frosty mugs of guitar rock with stiff grunge chasers. The resulting buzz sends the room spinning and the ears bleeding. It’s good.

The band’s “Aloud to Me” is a gentle introduction to their driving guitar sound. Its bouncy intro harks back to The Police’s rock-reggae sound, but the chorus shifts into full Foo Fighters mode with a hit of Third Eye Blind.

“Look in the Mirror” also rocks with powerpop guitar strumming, a sneaky, subversive bassline and crisp vocals that contrast well with the gruff instrumentation.

[audio:NoCo_SoHot.mp3]

Click play to hear “So Hot”.

But for full-on, uncompromising rock, the band unleashes “So Hot” (above) and “For the Institution”. The songs are tasty licks of angry grunge by way of Tool, perfect for body surfing.

Ironically, No Compromise’s gig this weekend is an acoustic set. However, unplugging the amps never diminished the power of grunge rockers like Nirvana, the Foo Fighters and Alice in Chains. If anything, acoustic sets scrape away the veneer and allow listeners to get the full, undiluted dose.

Get the juiced version of No Compromise from the band’s website, then check out their stripped sound at McGinty’s Public House (911 Ellsworth Dr) Saturday night. The 10:00 p.m. gig has a $5 cover.

Photo and music courtesy of No Compromise.