Reviews

Permanent Residence

Moyamoya Triple Double Single cassette

Perth trio MOYAMOYA gets their tunes on tape. Experimental and noisy, they pack a big sound for just drums, bass, and guitar. While this does diverge from the straight-ahead egginess of other Aussie bands, there’s still an undeniable irreverence in songs like “Fuck Life, Pa! Ma!” that ultimately dives deeper and darker than its title may suggest. Really great pedal work/effects happening on both bass and guitar, adding to that big sound, creating lots of contrast when the guitar steps aside for verses, letting bass and drums leg along, only to come blasting in for bridges and choruses, the whole lot working in lockstep, tight as can be. This Permanent Residence cassette compiles all six digital-only songs that were released over three singles, the cover art here picturing all three. This music is frantic, fun, and a little morose. Sign me up!

Sooks Moral Decay LP

From Perth, Australia comes SOOKS. Their first full-length Moral Decay is fourteen tracks of hardcore punk that explore a variety of contemporary issues. Vocalist Ange delivers a vast range that highlights various emotions in the lyrics. Occasionally, the guitar work reminds me of early Stig Miller. SOOKS throw a lot of variety into this album, with each song having a fresh presentation and multiple shifts within a song. Hands down, Moral Decay by SOOKS is worth owning.