Ketamines – All The Colours of Your Heart 7” (Pleasence Records)
For about the first 15-20 seconds of All The Colours of Your Heart, I thought I was listening to the wrong record. “All The Colours of Your Heart” reminded me of Ian Dury and the Blockheads especially with the organ and funk influence meets a poppy Fall. All Colours is part of a 4 part 7-inch series that was released on four separate labels. For all the funky influence of the A-side, the B-side has none of it. “Turning You On” is a complete psychedelic garage rock freakout that would be well in line with 13th Floor Elevators while adding in a surf pop calmness and quirky lead to jerk you back out your calmness. – Ed Stuart
Ketamines – Eleven Eleven EP (Leaning Trees Records)
If there is one thing you can say about the Ketamines it is that you would be hard pressed to pigeonhole the band into one specific musical category. I guess you could say they are consistently inconsistent with regards to musical influences. For all of All The Colours of Your Heart’s Dury/13th Floor Elevators influence, Eleven Eleven, number 2 of the 4-part series, is more of a pop record. Songs like “We Are 1” have Ketamines playing one of their more catchy and straightforward songs. Eleven Eleven is a pop record from an era of the late 80’s/early 90’s era with the arguable exception of “Change Your Ways.” “Take Me To Your Leader,” reminds me of early Superchunk and Guided By Voices before the better production. – Ed Stuart
Ketamines – Stay Awake 7” (Mint Records)
On number 4 of the 4-part series, Stay Awake, Ketamines continue in the pop vein much like how they did on Eleven, Eleven. “Stay Awake,” is the band going straight for the radio with the closest thing to a “hit” that the band has ever recorded. Stay Awake is the Ketamines doing their best power-pop impression, but in a way that doesn’t betray the Ketamines unique brand of quirky garage pop. As I mentioned before, Ketmaines will definitely keep you on your musical toes, but on Stay Awake, they are dangerously catchy and the power-popper inside of me would argue that this is the favorite single of the 4-part series. – Ed Stuart
Ketamines – All The Colours of Your Heart 7”
(Pleasence Records), Eleven
Eleven EP (Leaning Trees Records), Stay
Awake 7” (Mint Records)
These here three
7 inches were all recently released by this Calgary, Alberta band. The
Ketamines sound is pretty difficult to explain, which is good and bad depending
on how vast your tastes in rock music venture. They play folksy, lounge-y,
fuzzy psychedelic bubblegum with tan leather fringe stuck all around it. Some
of the other press the band has gotten has referred to them as pop punk. I
don’t really hear any punk in here other than the occasional irreverent lyric. Whatever
Ketamines may sound like to you, a few things are certain: the music is well played,
lighthearted and extremely likeable.
– Jay Castro
Action Jets – Time For The Action Jets 7” (Self-release)
In the 90’s,
band like the Action Jets were a-plenty and I mean that in a good way, but then
something terrible happened. Words that had become merely adjectives, like
emotional and pop-punk became dirtied and were used all too often to describe
an entire scene. Action Jets are not a throwback to that era, but maybe a
rebirth. When your band wants the kids to “Rock Like Pollard,” you are
accepting comparisons to Guided By Voices and their scrappy band of
power-pop-punk, which Action Jets has in droves. Action Jets are not a one
trick pony as they combine Lookout style pop-punk like The Parasites and
mod-revival punch into their songwriting attack. – Ed Stuart
Blasting out of the
ashes of Phoenix’s long time power poppers D Factor come Action Jets, poised
and ready for battle. Armed to the teeth with their secret weapon of a debut
single: its power packed with catchy 1970’s mod/power pop excavated from all
the right places, guaranteed for maximum blast radius. Their theme song is
short and sweet with a killer riff and chorus you will be humming the rest of
the day. And in the tradition of Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger,” comes AJ’s ode to Guided By Voices
front man Robert Pollard. Killer debut can’t wait to hear more! – Jay Castro
Brain F# – Empty Set LP (Grave
Mistake Records/Sorry State Records)
Loud, lo-fi blazing punk sung by a guy/girl tandem assault team that kind
of remind me of the old London anarcho-punk band Dirt, just the vocal delivery
not the music so much. The vocals
are mean and aggressive but not screech-y shouted or screamed to an intolerable
level. Another plus for Brain F# is despite the fact that these songs are fast
and in your face, the guitar parts are pretty catchy and this makes these
jagged pills Brain F# manufacture go down the gullet pretty smooth. – Jay Castro
Brain F# has
taken the Avengers/LA Dangerhouse sound and made it tougher and more volatile. Empty Set reminds of early punk/hardcore
like the Germs or even an early DRI Dealing
With It era where the emphasis is high energy and more high energy. Brain F#
which employs a vocal similarity to X, where the girl does more talk singing
and the guy sings. This is record to give to any young skateboarder in your
neighborhood and have this be their shred soundtrack. – Ed Stuart
Dad – Explicit
Parental Advisory LP (Self-release)
Dad features ex-members
of Finnish band Nazca, and from what I have heard of Nazca there are really no
paralles between the two bands. Dad is full of straight-ahead Spermbirds/later
Misfits style fueled energy with big gang-style background vocals. – Ed Stuart
Have you ever
been walking down the street on a warm summer afternoon with a spring in your
stem whistling your favorite Dave Clark Five tune when suddenly you think to
yourself: “I wonder what it would sound like if Glenn Danzig sang for The
Descendents?” Well guys and dolls speculate no more, Finnish punk band Dad is
here to answer that very question. Fast melodic punk songs about ugly kids and
IKEA sang with an unsettling amount of sincerity and passion. I’ll say it once
and I’ll say it again Europe is light years ahead of the U.S. in irony and this
album is another testament to that statement. – Jay Castro
Finderkeepers – Pack Your Bags EP (Centertown Records)
Finderskeepers
fire up a fantastic blend of melodic gruff/tuff punk rock. I hear a lot of
Chicago influence in Finderskeepers, bands like No Empathy and Pegboy come to
mind when I first listened to this EP. It’s heavy and loud but it’s really
catchy and some of the choruses seem to soar, so much so that you feel it in
your chest, especially with the last song “Push.” The band has two other
EP’s available on their Bandcamp page, the earlier stuff has a bit more Husker
Du production to it, and all of them are great. Finderskeepers continue to get
tighter and more focused with each release. This makes me highly anticipate
what comes next! – Jay Castro
Whether you were
aware of this or not, Canada is a producing power-pop bands at quite an
alarming rate and are planning for world power-pop domination, but what I
didn’t know is there next plan of attack is Midwestern American Punk, bands
like Dillinger Four, Husker Du, and Lawrence Arms just to name a few.
Finderkeepers is a chip of this Midwstern block. On Pack Your Bags, Finderkeepers plays the type of hard working
blue-collar anthems written by guys who work union jobs all day and spend a lot
of their free time drinking to forget those union jobs. – Ed Stuart
Thee Mighty Fevers – Fuck’In Great R’N’R LP (Dead Beat Records)
Thee Mighty
Fevers could be the heir apparent to the classic Teengenerate sound. I’m
thinking members of Teengenerate and Registrators grew up, met that special
girl, got married, had kids and Thee Mighty Fevers are their kids. Thee Mighty
Fevers were taught how to play and write by their high-energy garage-punk-Rock
N’ Roll loving parents. If you were ever wondering if the analog recorded,
hi-energy, blown out, run it in the red sound of Rip Off Records heyday would
ever come back, well it did and Fuck’In
Great R’N’R is where it’s at. – Ed Stuart
When I first
heard the first few notes firing out of this record, I stood up and felt a
tingling sensation in my skull. It’s been a long time that someone’s made a
record that sounds like this with this much heart and fervor. This lo-fi garage
punk band from Kobe, Japan comes at us like Godzilla skating on a bullet train.
Songs about Zombies, Parties and High School set to blazing fast Radio Birdman
meets Angry Samoans style music.
What makes Thee Mighty Fevers so formidable is that they’ve got the
manic energy of early Registrators and the guitar chops of Teengenerate. What’s
stopping this band from taking over the world? Absolutely nothing and I will
succumb and do their bidding! –
Jay Castro
Replentes – Caro Data Vermibus LP (Self-release)
Replentes lash
out with furiously fast and thick Fat Wreck Chords style hardcore similar to
Strung Out or Lagwagon with cookie monster vocals sung in Portuguese. This band
of Brazilian punks sounds taut and together, all songs are executed quite well
and in the tradition of Nat King Cole, David Bowie and Celine Dion comes a
rendition of Eden Ahbez’s “Nature Boy,” which I might add is one of the most
bizarre cover choices I’ve heard since Clapton did Marley. Repelentes do a fine
job at what they do, however what they do isn’t particularly how I like my meat
cooked. – Jay Castro
Replentes are a
punk band from Brazil that has been keeping the fire alive for over ten years
and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down on their latest release Caro Data Vermibus. Replentes plays a
melodic punk/hardcore in the same territory between Generator-era Bad Religion and early Good Riddance that speed ahead
like clockwork while never faltering to match the impassioned lyrics. – Ed
Stuart
Silpha and The Corspeboners – Agony And Ecstasy LP (Self-Release)
When I think of
horror punk, my first thought seems to go to 45 Grave considering they, along
with Christian Death, laid the groundwork for this style. Silpha and The
Corspeboners, a horror punk from Germany, have a female vocalist like 45 Grave,
but that is where the similarities end. Agony
and Ecstasy has an array of styles, but the most consistent employs an
early Face To Face sound crossed with some metal/thrash guitar reminiscent of
88 Fingers Louie. – Ed Stuart
The band is
comprised of sinister, spooky boys and girls from Germany with songs about
murder, animated machinery, suicide and insanity. Lead vocalist Silpha Obscura
is said to be of such enchanting beauty she can even arouse the dead, hence the
name. No, I’m kidding, I completely made that up. These horror themed songs on
this album are sung with such earnestness reminding me of Black Sails era AFI mixed with X (L.A.), giving the impression that
this band wants to be taken seriously like Evanescence
types or something. This may prove
to be a difficult task with the word “Corpseboner” in the name. – Jay Castro
Braddock Station Garrison – High Water EP (Self-Release)
This
DC area band plays a brand of likeable and melodic mid tempo mid 1970’s
rock. The songs are catchy
enough, but a tad long winded (opening track “Into Your Arms” clocks in at a smidge over 5 minutes). I
hear hints Raspberries or Badfinger peppered throughout. When listening to
this, I am reminded of the Oceans 11 remake when Brad Pitt is telling Matt
Damon (posing as a gaming official) how to act when first meeting Andy Garcia. “Be specific but not memorable, be funny
but don't make him laugh.” If you understand what
I’m talking about then you know this band has already achieved more than most
ever will. – Jay Castro
It has been a
while since I have heard a “college-rock” band in a long time especially one
that is reminiscent of the era that spawned the phrase in the first place. Braddock
Station Garrison (or BSG to save myself some typing) have invoked both the
spirits of Wilco and REM on their High
Water EP, but they are not afraid to play some Badfinger ‘70’s style rock
to people without short attention spans. In this day and age that is an
arguably a gutsy move considering this EP is as long as most punk LP’s I own. – Ed Stuart
Fairy Bones – The Fairy Bones EP (Self-Release)
The Fairy Bones
sounds like they came out of a time capsule and the time of their entrance in
said capsule was the 1990’s alternative era. Previous reviews have dubbed them
as synth-pop, which was only evident to me on the song “DUKA!.” Fairy Bones
in some ways could be the ‘90’s mix tape you never had. – Ed Stuart
This
EP is 4 songs of hook-y alternative grunge tinged songs with a slightly
abrasive edge. Singer Chelsey Louise’s voice almost sounds too good for rock
music itself. Maybe the band ought
to try a cover album of Nina Simone’s Little
Girl Blue and listen to Chelsey’s voice launch us all into the stratosphere
like when Superman whisks Lois away in his arms. The band has been compared to
No Doubt, but they’re not nearly as annoyingly plastic and perky. Think if
Alabama Shakes singer Brittany Howard sang for Sleater Kinney and that may get
you closer to Fairy Bones echelon. The band describes themselves as
synth/garage, but the synth part really doesn’t come in until the last song “DUKA!,”
soul/grunge may be more appropriate.
– Jay Castro
Zen Fuck-Ups – Days of the Week LP (Skabby Records)
From
Dublin, Ireland comes this wily band of 2 guys and 2 girls playing sloppy
hardcore drunkenly making their way through the crowded room. The first thing that
caught my attention was the cover art of a noose holding a pocket watch, which
I thought was pretty cool. The
music mostly goes in the direction of early ‘80’s California hardcore, but when
the girl vox pops in from time to time like in the song “Fight” is when my interest really peaks,
that’s when it starts going into Conflict/Crass territory. When the Zen boys
and girls find their sound a bit more, which is inevitable with time, they’ll
be a tempest on the Irish Sea. – Jay Castro
Zen Fucks Ups are
from Ireland, but they don’t play Irish-punk. Instead Zen Fuck-Ups play a loose
brand of punk hardcore that reminds of more UK ’82 bands like Blitz and The
Partisans and less of American hardcore. Days
of the Week tells the tale of a man’s descent into madness that has the
energy of the aforementioned era and bands interspersed with some ditties to
break up the furious pace. – Ed Stuart
Alvie and The Breakfast Pigs – Snake Headed Faceless Cowboy EP (Bird Flu Kitchen Records)
Classic rock
riffs soaked in lo-fi distortion and sprinkled with some hot analog sound.
Alvie and The Breakfast Pigs are playing a mean punk bluesy Rock N’ Roll on Snake Headed Faceless Cowboy. “Double
Crossed” could be the song Electric Frankenstein didn’t write, but should have.
Where as “Extra Fast” is a mix of punk blasts with some Sabbath type riffing in
the slower parts. Early Aerosmith, Alice Cooper influenced songs with a mix of
punk from a band that is not afraid to be playing both punk and rock. – Ed
Stuart
I
first met Alvie when I was a guest on Erratic! Radio and he was doing the sound
engineering. He handed me a copy of this EP and honestly I had no idea what to
expect. Out of all the sounds I
anticipated, the rollicking psychedelic blues punk that exploded out of my car
speakers like several simultaneously opened cans of trick snakes caught me by
surprise. Imagine what a band would sound like if The White Stripes recruited
Thee Oh Sees/Coachwhips John Dwyer, signed to Burger Records and someone exorcised
the self righteous demons that inhabit Jack Whites anal cavity. Great songs,
killer production, can’t wait for more Breakfast Pig action! – Jay Castro
Ben Disaster – Close My Eyes EP (Crude City Records)
From
what I’ve read, Ben dabbles with adding folk elements and experimental noise to
his music. But what I have before me are 3 songs of tremendously charismatic
tunes that lie somewhere between Superchunk power pop/indie rock grandiose and
The Replacements charming, swashbuckling Rock N’ Roll. According to his bio,
Ben was in a band called Let’s Dance but has been focusing on his solo material
since 2009 releasing an LP and several EP’s on different labels. Having
listened to his catalog, his confidence and song writing abilities grows with each
passing release. It should be only a short time before the world knows about
Ben Disaster. f not, then a great
injustice would occur in the universe and the earth has mere moments before it
devours itself in its own dreadful taste.
– Jay Castro
Replacements,
Husker Du, Modern Lovers, Echo and The Bunnymen, I hear all these bands in Ben
Disaster’s new release Open your Eyes.
Disaster has been busy in the last few years between fronting his own band
called Let’s Dance, being a roadie for “Wednesday Night Heroes and fill-in guitarist for Boston punk
group A Global Threat.” Open Your Eyes is Disaster’s new solo EP
and it’s an effortless mix of styles from ‘80’s post-punk to power-pop to a
twang infused pop in much the same way mid-‘80’s era Replacements did. Solid
release. – Ed Stuart
Dead Ghosts – Can’t Get No LP (Bachelor Records)
Can’t Get No was originally on Burger Records, but
Bachelor Records has decided to give this Dead Ghosts LP a second life in a
limited run. If you missed Can’t Get No,
the first time around do not miss this opportunity to pick this up. Dead Ghosts
are equally influenced by both Pebbles and the Loud, Fast and Out of Control compilations that came out some years
ago. Dead Ghosts play a mix of country twangy Rock N’ Roll in much the same
Buddy Holly did, but they have updated the sound for garage rock community. Can’t Get No is a surprise of an LP that
sounds like you found it in your grandparent’s collection and wondered why you
never looked there before for such a gem. – Ed Stuart
Dead Ghosts – Rarities LP (Bachelor Records)
Rarities is just what you think it is. To support
my statement, I pulled this description from the Bachelor Records website, “The
collection of songs you can find here are a mix of songs from OOP singles,
outtakes, live versions unreleased stuff and covers . . . limited to 500
copies.” If you read my
review for Can’t Get No, you’ll have
a great idea of what Dead Ghosts sounds like. The main difference between Rarities and Can’t Get No is an arguable amount of unevenness which plagues most
singles collections, but that doesn’t make them any less vital to have for your
collection. If you are Dead Ghosts fan, this is a must have and if you are new
to Dead Ghosts buy this along with Can’t
Get No. – Ed Stuart
Dead Ghosts – Rarities LP & Can’t Get No LP (Bachelor Records)
Coming
from some bands, I would cringe at the sight of two LP’s to review in one month
but since they’re from such a great band like Dead Ghosts I welcome it! Rarities is a collection of songs from
out of print singles and covers the band has had up on their Bandcamp page as A Shitty Collection of Shitty Recordings.
Can’t Get No is the band’s second LP
originally released last year, but is now being repressed in time for Dead Ghost’s
upcoming European tour. What does the band sound like you ask, oh yeah I almost
forgot that part. Dead Ghosts play wonderful 1960’s influenced garage rock
that’s fun, fast, and unruly. Think equal parts Dave Clark Five, Them and 13th
Floor Elevators. You’ll be singing
along and bobbing your head pretty much upon first listen to the songs on
either one of these records. – Jay Castro
Geyser – Geyser EP (Radiclaw Records)
WOW,
I was smitten on the first few seconds of hearing this record. Heavy dirty
hooks and mid tempo 1970’s inspired rock rule the first part of this killer EP.
Think Alice Cooper, the more muscular Thin Lizzy songs, and some later Stooges.
However as the record plays on the band slowly stirs in some post punk/noise
rock influences like Mission of Burma and Sonic Youth sounds. Believe it or not
the band makes it work; all this is tossed around, cooked up and served to you
on an old rusty skillet. The city of Sudbury,
Ontario has reason to be proud! –
Jay Castro
There are a
couple of ways a band could go if you take Sonic Youth as one of your main
inspirations. The first way is the early version where experimentation over
songwriting reigned, but Geyser takes the second way where songwriting ruled
out on as it did in the Goo era, but still
kept the deadpan vocals. Geyser
doesn’t stop there on their debut EP. The band fills this EP with dirty,
distorted guitar drone and early Stooges simplicity to make a pretty strong
fuzz rock debut. – Ed Stuart
Sonic Chicken 4 – Sonic Chicken 4 LP (Bachelor
Records/Dusty Medical Records)
In 2007, Sonic
Chicken 4 had just released their debut LP. Two years, two singles and many
tours later they had recorded their follow-up, but up until now the LP was
never released. The record was endlessly postponed and the band eventually
called it quits. So, first of all, garage rock lovers everywhere should give a
big round of applause to Bachelor and Dusty Medical for unearthing this lost
gem. Sonic Chicken is a mix of ‘60’s garage punk and wild abandon. King Khan
produced this LP, which is more surprising that it didn’t get released. Sonic Chicken 4 is the last will and
testament of a band that took Pebbles as a starting point and took off from
there. – Ed Stuart
These
French Rock N’ Rollers delivered some sweet 1960’s style melodic, lo-fi noise
pop crashing on this fine long player. There is a lengthy and winding tale
concerning this record. Apparently it was supposed to come out years ago and
got delayed by whatever label was supposed to put it out at the time. During
the delay the band called it quits and the record never really took off and got
shoved in the same enormous archives the Lost Ark of The Covenants also
resides. Now the fine folks at Dusty Medical and Bachelor have found it and
resurrected it. According to the press release this record was recorded in 2009
in a Spanish Castle and produced by King Kahn himself! Start the mental imagery
now. – Jay Castro
Woolworm/Grown-Ups – Split 7” (Debt Offensive Records)
Judging
by the grim and lonely picture of a secluded cabin in the woods on the cover of
this record, I expected something, well grim and lonely. However both bands deliver
some Grade A pop punk. From what I gather this is Woolworm’s first vinyl
release and by the time you read this it will probably be Grown-Ups last. Woolworm are a bit warmer on the pop
punk scale like Discount or J Church. Grown Ups deliver a more screechy/lo-fi
sound, but still highly melodic, think of a poppier sounding F.Y.P. or if
Jawbreaker would have been more drunk and rowdy during the recording of 24hr Revenge Therapy. A great record
from beginning to end! – Jay Castro
Woolworm has
been billed as “blanket rock,” which I’m not entirely sure what it is supposed
to mean. Woolworm sounds like SST-era Dinosaur Jr., but hyped to a punk
velocity without loosing its tunefulness. Melodic, brooding, Woolworm is an
effect-less My Bloody Valentine meets The Wipers. Grown-Ups, who in previous
reviews have been billed as emo, which I disagree with, play a Toys That Kill meets
early Superchunk style of alternative punk that is both as energetic and rough
around the edges as it is angular. – Ed Stuart
Crow Bait – Sliding Through The Halls Of Fate LP (Don Giovanni Records)
While it might
be vastly overshadowed by the bands from the five boroughs of New York City,
Long Island punk is just as tight, if not tighter, and more of a
community/cohesive scene. Crow Bait is one band that has come from Long Island.
This trio is made up two-thirds of Sister Kisser and the other third of Iron
Chic. Sliding Through The Halls Of Fate,
is a melodic filled ode to Midwestern American punk of Dillinger Four/Lawrence
Arms without ever forgetting the power of distortion and occasional muted hardcore
guitar chug in much the same way Lifetime (not from LI, I know) would utilize,
but albeit at a much slower pace in Crow Bait. – Ed Stuart
Long
Island NY trio bring country kissed music for those with a Rock N’ Roll
heart. This band consists of
members from Iron Chic, American Hellfire Club, Sister Kisser, among others. This
is the bands first full length already having a fist full of 7”s under their
big belt buckles. I know the word “country” scares a lot of you PUNX out there
but all labels aside; this is some top notch earthy Rock N’ Roll with heavy
introspection. Along the same
lines as Lucero, Ryan Adams and early Wilco, this is one rock solid release;
I’m going to see if I can find me the rest of their stuff! – Jay Castro
Trioxin Cherry – Let's
Take Off And Nuke The Site From Space LP
(STP Records)
This
debut album from a trio of malcontents from Nottingham, UK hits hard takes no
prisoners and laughs in your face all while doing so. The punk rock in this
record is heavy and fast, the guitars are loud and there are hooks galore. The
funny thing is: with all that I described above which leans on the music having
a sense of urgency, the band weaves a lot of pop culture references and jokes
throughout. It’s like the equivalent to watching Evil Dead II for the first
time and asking yourself: wait, was that supposed to be funny? Because it was
but judging by everything else that’s going on it shouldn’t be!
–
Jay Castro
Trioxin Cherry
has a healthy dose of paranoia and futuristic warnings. “We’re never going to
survive,” “There is no hope for the human race” type lyrics set against a
horror punk backdrop with a lot of heavy guitar riffage and Subhumans (UK) punk
without tongue planted firmly in cheek. – Ed Stuart
Unwelcome Guests – Wavering LP (Dirt Cult Records)
When I listen to
Warning, I can’t help, but think of early
Menzingers/Gaslight Anthem, which begs the question why did Epitaph go after
the The Menzingers and not Unwelcome Guests too? Who knows? Enter Dirt Cult to
the rescue to put out Unwelcome Guests. Warning
is a heavily melodic LP that rivals early Gaslight Anthem in both pop and grit.
This is the punk-pop of basement shows where kids hide their beers in bags,
sing along to their voices are hoarse, sleep it off and then do the same the
next night. – Ed Stuart
Strong,
sweaty and highly melodic anthems crowd this New York band’s second LP
following 2010’s Don’t Go Swimming full
length. This time around the band seems to crank up the volume a bit more. The
music on this record has a very likeable New Jersey/blue collar aesthetic to
it, which I totally love. I’ve said this once and I’ll say it again; if you’re
in a band you don’t have to be original, just put 100% of YOUR blood, sweat and
tears into it and the rest will fall into place. Unwelcome Guests sliced veins,
bursting sweat glands and exploded tear ducts spill all over their finely
crafted and sincere Rock N’ Roll tunes; absolutely terrific album for fans of
The Loved Ones, Smoke or Fire and Gaslight Anthem. – Jay
Castro
Sightlines/Crystal Swells – Split 7” (TRBL FCKR/Alarum Records)
Sightless
start things off with some light, crispy and airy pop punk that almost strays
into indie rock territory. Crystal Swells has a more noisy, aggressive and dark
side to their songs. Kind of reminds me of early A Place to Bury Strangers. Both
bands do a great job of bringing the rock to the table. If someone were to ask
me to pair these two bands on a release I would probably refuse, but they
actually go pretty good together as long as you listen to Sightless first which
greets you at the entrance of the dark tunnel you are about to go into and
Crystal Swells is what you encounter as you venture on in.
– Jay Castro
Sightlines mix
both punk-pop and ‘90’s alternative in much the same way Jawbreaker and Guided
By Voices did. The vocals are very close to later Jawbreaker in both delivery
and melody. Sightlines, especially on “Foreknowledge,” have guitar lines much
like Guided by Voices. On the flip side, Crystal Swells is one hot mess and I
mean that literally not in some figurative fashion way. Crystal Swells over the
course of two songs takes no prisoners. Where as Sightlines, is the cleaner and
prettier of the two bands, Crystal Swells is the noisy neighbor downstairs who
won’t shut up. Crystal Swells is awash in a sea of lo-fi grit that takes cues
from Jesus Lizard as it does Rip-Off and budget rock sounding punk bands. – Ed Stuart
Blow Up – Teenage News 1976-1980 LP (Self-Release)
Rock N’ Roll is
full of stories just like this where a highly critically praised band with a
fan following never catches on, goes unnoticed and the recorded songs are never
released. This is one of the most common stories in the annals of Rock N’ Roll and
here is another case where sometimes promise doesn’t amount to anything. Blow
Up was a band that started as kids in 1977 and played a great mix of glam, punk
and power-pop where Mott The Hoople meets Riff Raff meets a softer Saints meets
Powerpearls compilations. Blow Up was supposed to have a single on Bomp that for
whatever reason never materialized. Instead of wondering why these songs were
never released before, let’s just rejoice that they are available now. – Ed
Stuart
A
band that lived many moons ago in a land called California that seemed to be on
the brink of breakthrough, at least on a cult status anyways but kind of
petered out over time. They opened
up for great bands like The Replacements, and even Dead Kennedys but from what
I can see had a constant revolving door of members. This is another compilation
of Blow Up’s demos, live and unreleased tracks compiling the bands earlier
years, the LP Groovy Dynamite Heavy Now
(1981 – 1988) chronicles the bands later career. This is some sloppy,
juvenile Rock N’ Roll with heavy glam influences. There are some real gems in here, Blow Up falls somewhere in
between The Heartbreakers and The Real Kids realm and that’s a fantastic land
in which to dwell in! – Jay Castro
Petty Things – Year of the Dog LP (Rubber Brothers Records/Gnar Tapes)
Tempe
AZ’s Petty Things take a lot of elements from 1960’s rock and cradle it,
nurture it, and not a moment too soon present it to us in a highly charismatic
fashion. Year of The Dog has lean and
loud guitars with hooks o-plenty, drums that sound like their being played with
cinder blocks instead of sticks and a front man with a commanding voice to put
all these things in line. I hear Sonics muscle, Seeds energy and even some
Tommy James and The Shondells in there just to round out the effort. Wonderful
record, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to it and I will continue to do so! – Jay Castro
If the 13th
Floor Elevators and The Sonics had a side band it might sound something like
Petty Things. Short, simple, upbeat garage rock songs with a psych topping
twist; that makes Year of the Dog
quite a surprise LP. Petty Things is one of a myriad of new bands sprouting
from Arizona and is proving why AZ is establishing a reputable scene. – Ed Stuart
Faz Waltz – Back to Mondo LP (Piovra
Records/White Zoo Records)
Now, there are a
lot of claims that Elvis didn’t really die and numerous, albeit dubious, sightings
have been used to support this notion, but after listening to Back To Mondo, I’m wondering if Marc
Bolan didn’t fake his own death too. Faz Waltz is no copyist by any sense, but
they might just worship at the church of Bolan. Back To Mondo is chock full of tougher T. Rex riffs mixed with
Sweet swagger. If you are a fan of Giuda, ‘70’s Glam/Bovver Rock, Back To Mondo is for you. In addition to
producing some of the world’s best soccer players, Italy is now producing some
of the best in glam rock as well. – Ed Stuart
Italian
Glam/Punk superstar upstarts Faz Waltz come at us again with even more hooks,
charisma and relentless energy than ever before. The band’s previous efforts,
like 2011’s Life on The Moon, seemed
to be heavily influenced by Marc Bolan. Back
on Mondo is the band’s third LP and, much like teammates Giuda, have now
added Gary Glitter, New York Dolls and some David Bowie into the skirmish with
explosive results. For anyone that likes any of the above bands, by whatever
means possible get your greasy mitts on this album, play it loud and let your
eyes roll back into your skull and fall into everlasting bliss. – Jay Castro
Needles//Pins – Outta This
Place/Date Night (You Bring the
Napalm) 7” (La-Ti-Da Records)
Needles//Pins
once again come at us blasting their punk rock cannonballs using power pop
cannons on their latest 7” that came out late last year that showcases two
prime cuts of this stellar Vancouver outfit. The A-side is a feel good Saturday
night anthem and the B-side has Needles//Pins longing for their significant
other and features backing vocals from Vanessa of The Ballantynes fame. If you
ever wondered what Stiv Bators would sound like singing for The Undertones,
well here’s your chance to find out.
– Jay Castro
Needles//Pins
might be the band that justifies why you ever liked power-pop-punk in the first
place. Instantly recognizable anthemic riffs that owe as much to The
Undertones, as they do to any other band that came from Northern Ireland in the
same time period. Hot of the heels of the 12:34 LP,
Needles//Pins pen this two song classic that is arguably as good as anything
you heard from ’76-77 UK punk. The only problem with this 7-inch is deciding
which side you want to play first. – Ed Stuart
Jay Vons – Night (Was
Stealing From the Sun)/Days Undone 7” (La-Ti-Da Records)
Ex-Reigning
Sound and Robbers On High Street combine to make one hell of a Northern
Soul/Motown influenced 7-inch. Jay Vons are awash in heavy organ (think of the
Hammond/Farfisa) kind and sweet, soulful melodies and driving rhythm. Where
“Night (Was Stealing From The Sun)” is the dancey, upbeat organ driven
personality driven go-getter while “Days Undone” is it’s lounge-soul, funk
guitar driven, dirty sax wielding, dive bar visiting cousin. – Ed Stuart
This
is my first time listening to this band and boy was I surprised. It’s great
that people like La-Ti-Da Records realize that some of us that listen to punk
rock aren’t lunkheads and appreciate other types of music. The Jay Von’s
saunter on over to us from New York featuring members of Reigning Sounds,
Robbers on High Street, and a few others. The music is well-crafted
lounge/soul/R&B with an organ that’s there to make sure our hips don’t stop
swingin’ and our fingers don’t stop snappin’. This 7” also came out late last
year and I’m glad too much time didn’t pass before I was able to hitch a ride
on the Jay Von’s soul train! – Jay Castro
Steve Adamyk Band – High
Above/Hate Myself/A Promise is a Promise 7”
(La-Ti-Da Records)
We’ve
written many times about Steve Adamyk and anyone that reads Audio Ammunition regularly
knows that in our minds, this band can pretty much do no wrong. For anyone that doesn’t however here is
a brief synopsis: SAB is a smart, meaty, infectious aggro-pop punk band from
Ottawa that parks their car in the same garage as bands like My Brain Hurts era Screeching Weasel,
Snuff/Guns n’ Wankers and 1970’s punk poppers like Generation X and Buzzcocks. If
you are a fan of any of the above-mentioned bands, its high time you get into
SAB and this is the perfect place to start. What am I saying, anywhere is a great place to start with
these guys! – Jay Castro
If for some
reason, you have not heard Steve Adamyk Band, this 3-song 7-inch is a great
place to start. Steve Adamyk Band continues with every release to strengthen
his grip on the punk-pop foundation that the band has already built. High Above/Hate Myself/A Promise is a Promise is full of Ramones meets Buzzcocks meets
Lookout Records (think Queers and Screeching Weasel). Steve Adamyk Band plays straight
ahead punk that has no problem mixing pop melodies and harmonies into its
attack. – Ed Stuart
The Wild Ones – Day Drunk/Come
Around 7” (La-Ti-Da Records)
Oh, Wild Ones
you will be missed. This year The Wild ones called it quits, but we are going to
review this 7-inch anyway. The Wild Ones were one-part Nikki Corvette, one-part
surf-pop and one-part ‘60’s girl garage. Day
Drunk/Come Around is an ode to an era
where precious “oohs” clung to treble driven melodies for dear life and when
you weren’t going on a fun filled trip to the beach in 1960’s California during
the day, you headed to the dance hall for a late night slow dance with your
best girl who is aching for a kiss.
– Ed Stuart
Sadly
this Santa Cruz quartet of untamed ladies broke up earlier this year, but not
before we managed to nab an interview with them and thankfully not before
releasing this record. They have a full length and another EP up on their
Bandcamp page. These two songs finely display Wild Ones unique and delicate
approach to the Shangri-La’s meets Nikki Corvette in the bowling alley parking
lot sound. The song “Come Around” is
such a perfectly executed 1960’s style girl group love song it would fit
perfectly in Phil Spector’s box set Back
to Mono, a perfect example of “going out on top!” – Jay
Castro
The Forty Nineteens – Spin It LP (Heyday
Records)
Temecula is more
known for producing wine-tasting events, vineyards and idyllic wedding
locations than it is for producing Rock N’ Roll bands, but don’t let The Forty
Nineteens know that. On Spin It, The
Forty Nineteens are writing the songs that have a healthy mix of Tom
Petty/Bruce Springsteen American Rock N’ Roll mixed with ‘80’s pop rock and
Graham Parker, basically the songs that when I grew up were played on the
radio. The Forty Nineteens are a mix of members from Mary’s Danish, The
Leonards and US Bombs, but neither band would clue you in to the songs that
Forty Nineteens are playing on Spin It.
The Forty Nineteens sound as if they could hold there own against their influences
from the late ‘70’s/’80’s. – Ed Stuart
This
is one finely crafted record, especially for those of us that are old enough to
remember the 1980’s. This ain’t any kind of new wave record though. Temecula,
CA’s Forty Nineteens take their influences from the likes of Tom Petty, The
Stray Cats, Elvis Costello and even The Fabulous Thunderbirds at times. Produced
by David Newton (Mighty Lemon Drops) and mastered by Paul de Gre (Peter
Gabriel, X, Los Lobos) with their sophomore release; the Forty Nineteens seem
perfectly positioned for world domination. – Jay
Castro
Dinos Boys – Last Ones LP (Die
Slaughterhaus/Oops Baby Records)
Formed
in 2011 in New York then moved to Atlanta, the band has released a song on an
Oops Baby records comp and a 7” before releasing this LP. So don’t worry, you
haven’t missed too much, there is still time to go find everything this band
has done and you’ll want to as soon as you hear them. Dinos Boys create a
riotous sonic stew of bands like The Briefs and the Stitches but with a power
pop execution. The boys spin it with a flavor all their own. Bands like The
Damned and Menace also come to my mind when listening to this record. One of
just a hand full of records released so far this year to absolutely enslave my
mind. – Jay Castro
“If we practiced, it wouldn’t be fair for the other
bands we play with because we’d be too good” was one of the many memorable quotes I read from a CMJ
article on Dinos Boys. If Last Ones,
is evidence on their version of non-practicing, then please continue not
practicing because this LP kicks ass. Dinos Boys emerged from the ashes of
Atlanta’s Heart Attacks and Beat Beat Beat. When Chase (Dinos Boys singer) is
not jumping into trashcans in Biters videos, he is singing some the catchiest
punk you have heard in years. Dino’s Boys are ’77 punk with heavy dose of attitude;
think the Stitches, with hints of The Kids, The Saints, The Briefs mixed
through a budget/garage punk blender. Atlanta has another shining star. – Ed
Stuart
Mallevs – Mallevs EP (Ascetic House)
I’m
not exactly sure what I’m listening to here or what I’m supposed to take away
from it. Mallevs conjure up some serious atmospheric mechanical doom noise that
sounds like early Wax Trax Records stuff. This EP really doesn’t get going
until the third actual structured song In
The Dark, which is quite good and has a lo-fi, tinny, drum machine droning
mixed with a white wash of ghostly vocals. This is for fans of Throbbing
Gristle, Prurient (when they used to put out records that sounded like they
were recorded inside Satan’s flatulent anus) and all around spookiness in
general. – Jay Castro
Industrial
influenced music that draws from Skinny Puppy, Throbbing Gristle, with light
hints of Christian Death and Bauhaus and European cinema. Mallevs is more
concerned with evoking mood and emotion as opposed to any recognizable hook to
hang your hat on. This, arguably, is the soundtrack of the dark, dank corner of
the abandoned warehouse where you know something, most likely violent, is going
to happen to one of the movie’s main characters. – Ed Stuart
Wyldlife – The Time Has Come To Rock & Roll LP (Self-Release)
This
is the New York quartet second LP following 2011’s self-titled debut and
thankfully not much has changed since. On their second LP the band continue to
spew their fun, ultra catchy, high energy bluesy power pop influenced punk n’
roll so all those kids who get sent to the principal’s office have something
decent to listen to. If you’re a fan of The Cry!, Biters, eternal adolescence, cheap
booze, tight pants and tattoos and honestly what real American isn’t! So go
grab yourself a copy of this record tonight on the way to the Rock N’ Roll club.
– Jay Castro
If you think
Rock N’ Roll is dead, then you need to listen to The Time Has Come To Rock & Roll right now and I mean right
now. This is the new soundtrack to decadent nights fueled by booze, loose
women, cheap thrills and vague memories of the night before. “Saturday Night,”
is as if the Bay City Rollers lived in LA during the ‘80’s Sunset Strip era and
partied like Motley Crue. This is a mix of AC/DC, early Humpers, D Generation,
mixed with the pop melodies of ‘70’s power-pop and glam. Much like Biters (Tuk
produced this LP), Wyldlife is at the forefront of bands that aren’t afraid to
mix the tough with the tender. – Ed
Stuart
Sonic Avenues – Mistakes LP (Dirtnap Records)
My
first reaction when I read the album title was uh oh, is the band confessing
something concerning the contents here in? But when I started listening to the
album, there is nothing here that can be considered erroneous by anyone. This
time around, Sonic Avenues seem to take a slightly different approach; infusing
some dB’s style harmonies and jangly guitars into the mix. However the music
still propels in precisely timed and placed explosions with Max’s snotty vocals
and JC’s hammering drums that will still bring the building you’re in down on
your head. – Jay Castro
I know by saying
that Sonic Avenues are a good band is not really going out on a limb. So I
would have more surprised if Mistakes,
the third LP by Sonic Avenues, was a clunker, but it most definitely is not. Mistakes is full of the trademark
attention to songwriting and melodies that made their previous two LP’s, Sonic Avenues and Television Youth very good. Sonic Avenues mixes all the best
elements of Buzzcocks, 20/20, Generation X and add some ‘80’s radio-pop
melodies that you leave on repeat and have no problem doing so. – Ed Stuart
SIANspheric – The Owl/Smokin’ Ritchie 7” (Noyes Records)
This Canadian
band has been around since 1994 releasing their brand of unhurried, atmospheric
indie rock like smoke slowly engulfing the planet. They have a hand full of
releases, their debut Somniun being
their most admired, even lending a couple of tracks off of it to the TV show
version of La Femme Nikita. Everyone
compares them to bands like Slowdrive or The Verve and their early stuff sounds
more to that style. The two songs on this album however I hear the early emo
stuff in it like Christy Front Drive or Clarity
era Jimmy Eat World and even post rock like This Will Destroy You and God
Speed! You Black Emperor. If you’re life sometimes needs some tranquility, then
SIANspheirc is the perfect soundtrack. – Jay Castro
When you see the
word spheric in a band name, you can be pretty assured the songs will not be
under two minutes and this is the case with SIANspheric. “Shoegaze-space-rock band” is right. The
Owl/Smokin’ Ritchie reminds me
of My Bloody Valentine, Swervedriver, Ride and other lesser-known shoegaze
bands of the ‘90’s alternative rock scene. There is something to be said about
perseverance especially in the music world where bands break-up as quickly as
they get started, but SIANspheric have been around fourteen years. If you have
the patience to let songs grow and build, then SIANspheric is for you. – Ed Stuart
The Chiefs – Speed Rock 7” (Bachelor Records/Bachelor Archive)
Not to be
confused with The Chiefs from LA, this Chiefs is from a small town Austria. The
story behind this release is that The Chiefs played one show before calling it
quits that may or may not have been caused by having money that they couldn’t
spend at the bar. Speed Rock is taken
from recently unearthed practice tapes and lean more towards to early punk like
The Ramones, The Saints and The Kids as it does to late ‘60’s proto-punk like
those Back To The Grave compilations
and early Yardbirds simplicity. – Ed
Stuart
Not to be
confused with Southern California’s Chiefs that brought us the fabulous song “Tower
18” among others. This Chiefs is also from the late 1970’s but from the other
side of the world, Austria to be exact. This here 7” is the only thing this short
lived band ever recorded. Legend has it they practiced 5 times and played 1
show then kaput! Three songs that
have a similar sound to that region’s other bands that appear on Killed By
Death/Bloodstains comps. Try to imagine part Germany’s Pack, Belgium’s The Kids
and Raxola. This is some pretty primitive recording, but the punk Rock N’ Roll
fury shines through despite the fact. Essential record if you are a fan of the
above mentioned bands or compilations. – Jay Castro
