Wow. If you like super catchy garage/power pop music, this will light you right up. Makes me think of GENTLEMAN JESSE, MYSTERY DATE, and SONIC AVENUES. Nicely produced, which, for me, means it’s done well, but not at all overdone. You can really feel the energy of the band through the record. That’s not always true. Really, an excellent record.
The sound (and possibly the smell) of a midsummer show in a punk house living room; pop sensibilities played through a second-rate amp. The lyrics have the reflective melancholy of JAWBREAKER, but with music closer to AD/DC or JACK PALANCE BAND. CIGARETTE CAMP produces the hooks and minimalist harmonies needed to make this genre work. Fans of this end of punk should take note.
The HEAVY LAG half of this split LP was recorded by Jeff Burke of MARKED MEN and RADIOACTIVITY, which was a perfect choice by the band for their razor-sharp guitars and relentless rhythm section. I can hear some of Burke’s influence on the songs, and that is a total compliment. It’s what you want when you go with a well-traveled, experienced engineer in the studio—you could hear it on the band’s last album (Another Year Closer to Whatever) recorded by the BOUNCING SOULS’ Pete Steinkopf. The BAD CRIME half was recorded in their hometown of Milwaukee. They share the spirit and same endearing, lo-fi “wheels falling off” appeal of fellow Brew City punks MODERN MACHINES.
Straight out of the gates, HEDGE starts kicking you in the chest with a catchy tune that builds on all the better melodic bands from the late ’80s and ’90s. Imagine the first time you heard MOVING TARGETS, RADON, the LEMONHEADS (Hate Your Friends to Lick, none of that solo Dando crud), TILTWHEEL, middle-period HÜSKER DÜ, and even JR. JUGGERNAUT. This record has a comfortable and familiar sound while retaining its newness, entwined in well-crafted and memorable songs.
A vinyl reissue of an album that was originally released on CD in 2000. MINORITY BLUES BAND kicks things off with five songs that are firmly rooted in punk but have underlying emo tendencies, with songs sung in English and their native Japanese. At times there’s a heavy CAP’N JAZZ vibe, albeit more in-tune and angry with a more controlled chaos. 1000 TRAVELS OF JAWAHARLAL are definitely holding it down with more of the same type of vibe as their comrades, but whereas MINORITY BLUES BAND is a bit more rooted in punk, I’d argue that JAWAHARLAL are screamo to the core. All in all, this is a great split and I for one am a huge fan of the split LP format, so the fact that this finally has seen a vinyl release is perfect.
To me, this sounds like DEAD TO ME meets MARKED MEN with vocals sung in Swedish. Pretty good. It’s catchy, kinda lo-fi sounding, toe-tappin’ stuff. Definitely worth a spin or two!
For 25 years, this Japanese act has been cranking out power pop with a punk crunch, and while not a hair is out of place on their seventh album, I wish it weren’t such a tidy affair. The facile guitar leads that dot these tracks don’t do much to boost them and the hooks just don’t grab me like others working in the genre. That isn’t to say there’s anything wrong with this music, but that’s sort of the point. It’s polished to a point of diminishing returns. Pop songs can sound too calculated, and that’s exactly what happened here. They even straight up steal the lead from BLONDIE’s “Dreaming” in the track “Talking to My Heart,” and that’s about the most brazen move they make. That’s not to say there isn’t heart and craft on display, it just ultimately doesn’t grab me.
