Aquarian Blood Tease Forthcoming Goner Debut with Amplified Madness of “Heaven Is In My Head”; “Won’t Forget to Die” and “Asshole In the Castle”

Posted on 2017/01/26 | Leave a comment

Members of Aquarian Blood, whose new album is due February 10 on Goner Records.

Aquarian Blood features husband/wife duo JB (Ex-Cult) and Laurel Horrell (formerly of NOTS).  What began (according to the band’s bio) as a home recording project has turned into a full-blown one, and they’ve offered the world a three-act tease of their forthcoming debut, “Last Nite In Paradise”: “Heaven Is In My Head”; “Won’t Forget to Die” and “Asshole In the Castle”.

Fans of each spouse’s other projects will find much to like here.  “Heaven Is In My Head” is full-on, raging synth-punk.  Announcing itself with a Tron-summoning synth line, the band throw it all into the red: vocals yelp and rail, guitars squall and synths tase – like being spun around, blindfolded, to pin the tail on the donkey…for almost two minutes.  “Won’t Forget to Die” (which, as the lyrics remind us, “no one ever does”), slows things wayyyy down the rabbit hole, a hazy raga psych drone wraiths around a Joy Division-y bassline, the gypsy strings towards the end adding to the fug.  Last (in track order), “Asshole In the Castle” – its title sadly fitting in these days and times – is more of a straightforward punk record, albeit with layered vocals and an off-kilter guitar hook.  Together, the songs make for a thrilling joyride.  Can’t wait to hear the rest.

But wait we must, if but only for a bit longer:  “Last Nite In Paradise” is due February 10 from the always in vogue Goner.  Check the Aquarian Blood bandcamp page for (slightly) more info.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Sprain Your Neck to the Debut, Self-Titled Set from Brisbane’s Pious Faults

Posted on 2017/01/17 | 1 comment

Pious Faults, S/T (Tenth Court, 12/20/2016)

Photo credit: Glen Schenau

‘There ain’t/ no future/here”

“Complete Disregard” – the opening song on the self-titled, six-track debut (I never know if that’s an ep, album, or ‘mini-lp’ anymore) from Brisbane’s Pious Faults – begins and ends with a short, sharp feedback stab in the earhole.  It’s a fitting way to start off a set of intense hardcore with an ear to the past and an eye on the present.

Many new bands are using the visceral aspects of early to mid-80s hardcore (American or otherwise), twisting and turning them to serve their own purposes. The applies, as well, to Pious Faults – several tracks here would’ve fit nicely on seminal 80s hardcore comps like Not So Quiet On the Western Front, Flex Your Head (as Vice also points out), or This Is Boston, Not L.A.  But there’s more at play here, with a rhythmic variety beyond blinding, four on the floor speed or d-beat rehash (see, “Rentrer à Quatre”) and a welcome lack of a predictable breakdown/‘mosh’ (does anyone still use that word?) bit or a shout-along chorus (really, choruses in general), all adding a welcome twist and the promise of future evolution.

As with any self-respecting h/c joint, it doesn’t overstay it’s welcome (only one (one!) track is over a minute long – someone tell D.R.I.!), and it’s all the better for it; points made, ears rung, move along.

Out now on the fab Tenth Court label (home, also, to tgh fave Chook Race).  Order here.

1 Comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , ,

The Self-Titled Debut from Tropical Skin Byrds Staggers

Posted on 2017/01/13 | Leave a comment

Tropical Skin Byrds, S/T EP (Wharf Cat Records, 1/13/2017)

‘your pain is my pleasure”

Tropical Skin Byrds is a musical trio comprised of artist Nina Hartmann on vocals and bass, ZZ Ramirez (of tgh fav, Ukiah Drag) on guitar and Sean Halpin on drums.

Teaser cuts, “Cut it Off” and “Venus In Fury” set the tone nicely, with Ramirez’s chugging, Ginnesque lines pushed way up front in the mix, backed by Halpin’s sledgehammer drumming.  The overall effect is blissfully disorienting, the music buffeting as Hartmann’s insistent cries strobe from somewhere at the center of the maelstrom (something in her vocal delivery recalls Lydia Lunch, crossed with Kyle Toucher – ok, maybe just me).  Stylistically, there are touches of Sonic Youth’s SST years (think Confusion Is Sex and songs like “Death to Our Friends”) and more experimental hardcore like Flipper and Saccharine Trust.  It’s a great, arresting listen.

The EP is out now, courtesy of the oh so fine Wharf Cat label (seriously, check the catalog).  Not much to find on the band, for now, so continue to scour the interwebs for any info relating to tours, further releases, fan club meet and greets, séances, etc.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , ,

Atlanta’s Death Stuff Share “Surprise Ex”

Posted on 2017/01/11 | Leave a comment

[Ed. Note:  this was meant to have posted back in November…oops.  Quoth Homer Simpson:  “It’s still good!  It’s still good!”]

Death Stuff, “Surprise Ex” (Monofonus Press)

“Surprise Ex” is a new track from Atlanta three-piece, Death Stuff.  Opening on a riff that threatens to go all ‘Earth AD” the song, instead, roils into propulsive, whirling dervish post-punk before a full-on art-thrash spasm is abruptly euthanized after 2:30 or so.  It’s noisy.  It’s a bit exhausting.  It reminds us of Girl Band, Running and early Butthole Surfers.  It’s great.  Get on it.

“Surprise Ex” is up now on the Death Stuff Bandcamp page – as is a fantastic set of demos from February – and looks to be set for inclusion on a self-titled release due later this fall on auto-correct darlings, Monofonus Press.  I don’t know much more about Death Stuff, except that their first fbook post looks to be from last December and they like to repeat the words ‘death stuff’ on their page – a lot.  Looking forward to more, more, more.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , ,

Share the Wintry Embrace of “Collapser” by Kid Koala and Emiliana Torrini

Posted on 2017/01/11 | Leave a comment

Cover art for Kid Koala’s “music to draw to: satellite”.

Kid Koala, “Collapser” (ft. Emiliana Torrini) (Arts & Crafts, 1/20/2017)

“One day you’ll know/Why i had to go”

There are moments, when walking out amidst newly falling snow, when background noises are muted, replaced with a preternatural stillness.  Small dots of white in the air and on the ground sift and swirl together, dusting brows and lashes and forming a constantly evolving portrait.  It’s a thrillingly rare moment of stillness, often best experienced under the close cover of darkness – like being under the dome of your own snow globe.

Play this song at the turn of the key.

Featuring vocals from Emiliana Torrini.  Taken from Kid Koala’s forthcoming music to draw to: satellite, due January 20 courtesy of Arts & Crafts (pre-order here).  Follow Kid Koala on fbook and the twitt.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , ,

Yeehaw! A Punk Roundup Featuring The Lowest Form, Exotica, Good Throb, and Urochromes

Posted on 2016/12/08 | 2 comments

Ok, so there’ve been a few punk/hardcore/whatever releases over the past few months that I’ve been trying to get around to and haven’t – so now I am.  I intended to write up something individual and special to say about each of these but, fuck it, I’m gonna just put ‘em all into one, shortcut “combo” review.  Since I said “fuck it”, that makes it kinda punk, no?  No?  Oh well, here goes…

The Lowest Form, Personal Space (La Vida Es Un Mus; Iron Lung)

Personal Space is the latest from UK hardcore punk band, The Lowest Form, and it slays.  It’s part old school hc (I keep hearing alot of Wattie in the vocals, and Black Flag in the crumbling guitar sound (provided by Michael Kasparis, also part of Anxiety’s brilliant debut)) mixed with just good ol’ noise, all to great effect.  Highlights are many, and include the repeated face punch of opener, “Interplanetary Bad Boy”, which slowly drowns in its own, rich stew of hiss and feedback, and the utter chaos of “Evol”.  This record is cathartic in the ways of many a great, viscerally angry records.  In years such as this one (have there really been any?), sometimes it’s more than worth it to swallow the bile in your throat, let it burn, then scream it out.

Fitting for a band that sound like they spend a lot of time ‘off the grid’, the band don’t seem to have much internet presence.  Be sure to go and grab a copy of Personal Space (digital or “Bad Boy” vinyl) via the band, La Vida Es Un Mus or Iron Lung (in the US).

Highlights include: “Interplanetary Bad Boy”, “Gak Attack”, “Personal Space”.

Exotica, Musique Exotique #01 Demo (La Vida Es Un Mus)

Exotica wield bludgeoning, 80s (to these, admittedly, old and tinnitus-riddled ears) reanimating hardcore (I hear some of the old NYHC bands like (pre-crossover) Agnostic Front or Kraut, as well as the churning guitars of Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing-era Discharge on tracks like “Depresion”. Lead singer Lauren Gerig’s bilingual sing/scream/shriek is a revelation.  The members of Exotica are based in New York, but hail from Mexico, Argentina – play this loud enough to be heard through your own wall.

Like The Lowest Form, no real interwebs presence to allow fawning – grab a copy of Musique Exotique #01 (digital or cassette) from the band or La Vida Es Un Mus.  They also have a show coming up 12/29 in Guadalajara, MX – deets.

Highlights include: “Pesadilla”, “Passive Victim”.

Good Throb, Good Throb (La Vida Es Un Mus)

From earlier this year, the latest release from London quartet, Good Throb – and, regrettably, the last for a while, as members are now apparently geographically displaced.  Good Throb (the record) adds layers of noise and feedback to the rhythmic, punk-funk hc of 2014’s also great (and succinctly titled) Fuck Off, with tracks like highlight “SCUM” and “The Queen Sucks Nazi Cock” recalling Crass, early Butthole Surfers and Flipper.  Tasty.

Good Throb is available from the band and La Vida Es Un Mus (no, we’re not a label blog – honest!).

Highlights include: “SCUM”, “Welcome Break”.

Urochromes, “My Dickies” (Wharf Cat Records)

“I’ve got a queer theory…” so beginneth “My Dickies” is the new one from western MA, USofA band, Urochromes.  This 1 minute and change track bounces around like a kid hopped up on pixie sticks in a rubber room.  Light speed hardcore.  Cracked garage fuzz.  Avant-noise skreech.  Squirrel!  Do yourself the favor of being tugged along in its wake.  Here endeth the review.

Taken from forthcoming Night Bully EP, due January 27 from Wharf Cat Records (pre-order a copy and/or digital download here) – one more reason to be anxious for this year to end(eth).

2 Comments

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Bellamys’ Debut EP is Jangly, Lo-Fi Goodness

Posted on 2016/12/01 | Leave a comment

The Bellamys, S/T EP (Odd Box Records)

With their self-titled EP, Cardiff trio The Bellamys (though one member now resides in Vancouver), have crafted an indie pop winner.  Opener, “Motorway”, sets the tone nicely – chiming guitars cling and clang over an urgent drum beat and synthesizer that sounds a bit like the droning of a hurdy gurdy, as boy-girl harmonies and counter-melodies delve into the delights of well, driving.  Apex, “Best Friend”’s punk jangle underpins a wistful diary entry describing a would-be companion (“but you don’t notice me/you look right through/me/you think you are so cool/that’s cause you are”).  Closing ballad, “For You to See” conjures Super 8 quick-cut images and is quietly affecting without going full twee.  An absence of artifice makes this a charming, hand-hold of a listen; like having a conversation with an old friend over a beer – hopes, dreams; weighty stuff made to feel less onerous.

That press release accompanying the digital recommends the EP for fans of The Pastels, C86, Tellulah Gosh (I’d add The Vaselines and Thee Headcoats) and, erm, Slayer.  Sly, and (very) thinly veiled Haunting the Chapel references notwithstanding, this is a damn fine, lo-fi indie pop record.  Get on it.

Odd Box Records (which, with a roster boasting such artists as City Yelps, The Manhattan Love Suicides, T.O.Y.S., and Nervous Twitch, has quickly become one of my favorite labels over the past few years of doing this) will release the EP on December 2.  Here’s hoping The Bellamys continue doing their thang, in spite of the geographic separation.  Check more on the band on fbook and delve into their earlier catalogue (the demo from February is also great – paricularly, “it’ll be ok”) on Bandcamp.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Mr. Twin Sister Unleash the Post-Punk Dub of “Poor Relations”, Donate Proceeds to Standing Rock Sioux Tribe

Posted on 2016/12/01 | Leave a comment

Mr. Twin Sister, “Poor Relations”

New York quintet Mr. Twin Sister returns with “Poor Relations”.  Eschewing the smoothed out, continental r&b and squelchy indie electronica of 2014’s self-titled album (which, btw, is fantastic) “Poor Relations” fires up a downtown, post-punk dub party.  The band’s rhythmic sensibility, so strong through all of the prior releases I’ve heard, is more aggressive – more ESG than Sweetback.  The lyrics, also, are more forceful, seeming to rail against the dangers of the acceptance of an abusive relationship.  In the band’s own words: “[T]his song meant something else when we first wrote it years ago; recent events have made us hear it differently.  We believe in compassion, empathy, and tolerance, and hope that you will join us in speaking out against the erosion of their importance in our world”.

In that spirit, Mr. Twin Sister will donate all proceeds from the download of “Poor Relations” to standingrock.org – do it at their Bandcamp page (linger, and browse through their catalogue).  You know what to do…and, while you’re at it, keep up with all things Mr. Twin Sister on fbook and the twit.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , , ,

Laurie Spector’s Debut as Hothead Hits All the Right Notes

Posted on 2016/11/23 | Leave a comment

Hothead, S/T (Sister Polygon)

Hothead is the solo alter ego of songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Laurie Spector, who has played in DC bands like Gauche, Foul Swoops and Chain and the Gang.  Her Hothead debut (released on cassette by the fantastic Sister Polygon) contains seven tracks, including a cover of “You Should All be Murdered” by Sarah Records sly indie pop titans, Another Sunny Day.

The cover choice feels apropos, since standout tracks here like “How It Goes” conjure up the same emotions, with jangle perk offsetting the more acerbic lyrical aspects.  Spector’s Hothead arrangements, though, are less wide-eyed, with each track smothered under a heavy cloak of reverb.  Spector sings withering kiss offs to “disaffected pseudo intellectuals” (“Rocco”) and and those for whom she “feel[s] nothing in love” (“Inside Loop”) at times  with a kind of drunken snarl, her voice buried deep in the mix (even when accompanied solely by acoustic guitar on the strummed ballad, “Marilyn”, her voice sounds like it’s coming from a different room).

Musically, in addition to indie jangle-pop, there’s shades of 70s AM rock (which, in turn, brings in aspects of folk and bluesy country) and power pop.  Add in some playful ornamentation (“Hothead” (the closing track) features what sounds like a recorder(?); “Rocco”, handclaps) and some eye moistening melodies – seriously, we double dog dare you to listen to the chiming guitar leads in “How It Goes” or “Inside Loop” without a wistful smile filling your face – and what you have is an immensely satisfying listen.  Is “lo-fi power pop” an oxymoron? Maybe, but who cares when it’s this good.

The self-titled album is out now, and is available digitally on Bandcamp (tapes are sold out).  A tour is also imminent (though, sadly, not near us *sniff*), so go say ‘hello’ if you’re in the area – dates here.  There are also some great discussions with Spector on the ideas and processes behind the album, courtesy of Impose Magazine and WAMU’s bandwidth.fm.  Check ‘em out.

Highlights include: “Inside Loop”, “How It Goes”.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , , , ,

“Fire Dance” Brings Together Members of Wall, Parquet Courts and Merchandise

Posted on 2016/11/16 | Leave a comment

“Fire Dance” 7” (Wharf Cat)

Sam York, Austin Brown and Carson Cox (of WALL, Parquet Courts and Merchandise, respectively) have joined under a groove to bring us “Fire Dance”.  York’s dead-eyed vocals ride a churning rhythm that calls to mind the downtown, honky punk-funk of Liquid Liquid (the break during the second half reminded me, at least, of the sample from “Sing Sing Sing” used in Mantronix’s “Big Band B Boy”, but that’s prolly just me), while layer upon layer of squelching synth leads worthy of early Cabaret Voltaire and Art of Noise launch the track into overdrive.  Described as Cox’s “ode to downtown New York”, it seems both an ode to the city as it was – searching for “lost memories” of things that “came before”, even though you’d “hoped for more” – and a call to break free of such nostalgia and “search for more”.  Fantastic.

What might, back in the day, have come out on a label like Celluloid now sees the light courtesy of the reliably great Wharf Cat Records, who will release it January 6.  You can pre-order the vinyl here, and/or a digital copy here and on iTunes.

Leave a comment

Posted in Reviews

Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,