After a while of hiding in my remote arctic cave and letting poor Audio Ed do the heavy lifting around here, I'm back to earn my keep at the Audio Ammunition Underwater Stronghold. Hopefully Ed won't make me pay for my insubordinate behavior by cleaning the latrine with a toothbrush again. Stay tight though, we'll be back very soon with more delectables! - J Castro
These guys are from Santiago, Chile
and they throw down a hard, fast and mean style of punk rock. The kind where you can actually feel the
power radiating from the speakers and hitting your gut. Listening to this record gives you the same
kind of feeling you get when watching a street brawl and one of the guys picks
up a broken bottle. The songs are sung
entirely in Spanish and the production is slightly distorted but it gives the
record an edge. If you’re looking for adrenaline
inducing punk but are getting tired of your old Negative Approach and Cro Mags records,
then seek out ANMLS.
- JC
- JC
Anxieties
– Buried Alive CD (Lab Rat
Industries)
This band had been around for ten
plus years cranking out the perfect blend of The Damned, The Dickies and the
Dead Kennedys style of punk rock. Yes, they’re that good. They also radiate a similar vibe to fellow
Pacific North Westerners the Briefs. Their newest release Buried Alive is actually 4 new tracks with a whole grip of
remastered older tracks from previous, long out of print EP’s. The only way this CD would be better is if it
came wrapped in a skinny tie! - JC
Denim and Leather – Sacred Autism LP (Drunken Sailor)
Fashionism – Smash Singles LP (Drunken Sailor)
My favorite band has two, count
them TWO new releases. Absolutely Glorious! As the title suggests this is a
compilation of the band’s stellar singles. If you’ve been cruelly depriving
your ear drums of the sweet sounds of Vancouver’s Fashionism, then let me
attempt to describe what you’ve been missing.
Think The Gift era Jam mod pop mixed
with the raw melodic punk sounds of bands like the Boys, Generation X and
Teenage Head. Yes that’s what you’ve
been missing. Now go cry and clench your fists in regret. But redemption is
still at hand and it lies in the purchase of this record. - JC
Fashionism
– Come On My Baby 7” (Drunken Sailor/Neon
Taste)
Another striking single from
Fashionism. The A-Side and title track
explodes with The Clash’s “White Riot” levels of energy and never lets up. “Come
On My Baby” has more of a pop sensibility to it though. The B-Side, is called “Baby She’s Gone” and
it’s a slower, crying in my beer style song that sounds like it could have been
an early Elvis Costello penned tune. I
can’t quite put into words how much this band inspires me. They’re the kind of band that makes you want
to get up and start your own group. – JC F.U.K. – Detroit 1977 7” (Hozac)
This is another fine addition to
the Hozac’s wonderful archival series.
The name of the record pretty much says it all. F.U.K. (Fucked Up Kids) apparently played one
show on Halloween night, 1977 in Ann Arbor MI and only recorded these two
songs! The band also features a couple of guys that went and formed some band
called Mission of Burma, perhaps you’ve heard of them? The A-side is a scrappy smoker of a 77 punk
tune, B-Side sounds a little more early New Wave like The Now. – JC
Freak Genes – Qwak Qwak LP (Drunken Sailor)
If you remember the stellar Playtime LP that this band released last
year, well not too much has changed thankfully.
But if you don’t, then I’ll have you know that Freak Genes are still
emitting the same Swell Maps meets The Toy Dolls bizarre smart ass style of
irreverent music. Some of the tunes on
here also give me a Sleaford Mods feel too. This LP is a 17 song mammoth with
few clunkers folks. That says something
about this band right there. - JC
ISS
– S/T LP (Drunken Sailor)
This
duo have the dead pan delivery and biting wit of groups like The Fall, Wire and
Gang of Four. Now try to imagine that laid out over droning minimalist beats. The music
is in a haunting post punk production and the vocals are delivered with venom
like only the British know how to do.
But these guys are from North Carolina?! Oh yes, you read that right!
Drunken Sailor calls it “post-punk-garage-sample-lo-fi-snot-core at its
finest”. Very well said, I totally
agree! - JC
Ruby Karinto S/T LP (Hozac)
Apparently I can now add Hozac
records to that list of labels that churn out unpredictable releases! Ruby Karinto are a four piece band from
Victoria, BC and play synth heavy herky jerky pop tunes. I can easily imagine Mike Myers and Dana
Carvey dancing to this during one of those old Saturday Night Live Sprockets
sketches. This isn’t one of those instantly
likeable records, this is one you have to sit and absorb in order to appreciate
the band’s complexity. – JC
Ogikubo
Station – We Can Pretend Like LP
(Asian Man Records)
This is the duo’s (which includes Mike
Park & Mixtape's Maura Weaver) follow up to last year’s Self-Titled debut
EP which was an all folk endeavor. This
time around they employ a full band on some of the songs. Even though they did
give some of the tunes here the full instrumental treatment they still remain melancholy,
which gives them a Shins/Death Cab for Cutie/Rilo Kiley feel to them now. That may seem like a lazy comparison but the song
writing on this album is definitely on the Ben Gibbard/Jenny Lewis level. This is quite an ambitious and well executed effort and I highly recommend this if you're at all a fan of the above mentioned bands or that style of music. - JC
Sex Tourists - S/T LP (Drunken Sailor)
WOW! We never quite know what to
expect from Drunken Sailor records, except for the fact that their releases are
usually pretty great. Seeing this record
and the band’s name, my imagination ran all over the place. I grew up on dark 80’s synth pop like New
Order, OMD, Depeche Mode. Pet Shop Boys, Human League, well by now you get the
picture. Australia’s Sex Tourists’
fantastic LP fits in perfectly with all of the above mentioned bands. If you’re a fan of that style, I can’t recommend
this enough! - JC
The Sueves – R.I.P. Clearance Event LP (Hozac)
This band is from Chicago and are
now offering, well technically their fourth LP (some of their previous long players
were cassette releases) for you to go home and play really really loudly. Bands like this, the louder you play them the better they sound. The Sueves draw
from a similar river as Drive Like Jehu, Rocket From The Crypt, Hot Snakes, Obits and maybe even some
drops of Nation of Ulysses tossed in.
This is my first time hearing this band and based on this LP, now I’m on
the hunt for their earlier stuff. - JC
Rad Max – Rad Tracks LP (Self Released)
These guys are from Portland and
classify themselves “Rad Wave”. And why not, after rap/metal country/rap and reggaeton, new musical mishmash genres can't get any worse. The band’s
official description – “a chaotic vision of post-punk tomfoolery, ping-ponging
through a kitschy, apocalyptic 80’s landscape”. I couldn’t have said it better
myself. This release reminds me of Boris the Sprinkler coupled with Eddie Money cheese infused mochismo. The production is pretty good,
the synths swirl around in the background and the guitar is thick and up front,
K.K. Downing style! - JC
RIK & The Pigs – A Child’s Gator LP (Total Punk)
Well now this is quite impressive! Olympia Washington’s Rik & the Pigs have
come a long way. They’re going for a 70’s
Aussie sound like The Saints, X, Chosen Few types but scrappier and they’re
pulling it! The production on this LP is
the best I’ve heard on any Pigs record so far. Not to say it’s polished or anything
but this new clearer sound suits the band perfectly. The guitars are hook filled and set to full
buzzsaw mode and the vocals radiate desperation and madness! This one’s a stunner kids! - JC
Velveteen Rabbit – Mind Numbing Entertainment 7” (Hozac)
Oh wow, as soon as I heard the
opening guitar sound on this 7” I knew I was in for something special. Former Jeanies unleash two of the best songs
I’ve heard all year! Think Marc Bolan’s
monster hooks along with those hard stomping Gary Glitter beats mixed with
Bowie’s softer spoken vocal delivery and you’ve got yourself a super star of a
record! The B-Side has an almost Lovin’
Spoonful melody to it and it cooks hot too!
Excuse me while I pick my jaw up off the floor now.
On second thought, I'll just leave it down there since I'm about to listen to this record again and I'm not going to pick off all the cat hair and potato chip crumbs off of it again! – JC
On second thought, I'll just leave it down there since I'm about to listen to this record again and I'm not going to pick off all the cat hair and potato chip crumbs off of it again! – JC
No comments:
Post a Comment