V/A OCCII ~ DiY Comp Ltd EP
Excellent four-song freak collection from the Netherlands. Some dreary slow synth/No Wave from LANGE NIEZEL, followed by a whirling D-beat detonation from OUST (check their 12″ from last year if you haven’t already) on the A-side. As solid as that pairing is (and to be clear, it’s great), the flip features a stellar KBD rocker from GIF, and fans of AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS rejoice upon hearing “Comfort Zone,” because your shit just got punker. Then PONYTAIL TARTIFLETTE closes the record with an eponymous monster, a noisy track that channels the Trim Tab Tapes catalog while tripling down on chaos. “I make horses look like the police,” whispers the vocalist before the band launches into a jerky assault that descends into MELT BANANA-meets-free jazz and then just…stops. Fucking gorgeous pink wax, risograph cover, and a nice educational poster inside—the 7″ comp format catches a lot of flak, but this one is damn near perfect.