Reviews

The Freakees Freakee Deakee EP

The FREAKEES have been kicking around the Los Angeles punk scene for the past five or so years, and in that time they’ve put out a bunch of stuff. So, it’s a bit surprising to learn that this is their first solo vinyl outing. Everything else has been a feature on split, a cassette, or a digital-only release. Well, they’re starting off with a 7″ to be proud of! They’ve toned down the vocals a bit from earlier material. They’re still wild, but they’ve been pushed closer to the front and are no longer drowned in reverb. It’s a welcome change. The A-side features three quick tracks of bratty, hardcore-influenced garage punk.They have some of the trappings of egg-punk, particularly the warbly effects on the guitar, but they give off more of a REATARDS vibe than you’d get from your typical DEVO-core band. It’s solid stuff. But let’s talk about this B-side—holy moly is it good!  “Freakee Friday” slows things down to a snail’s pace and allows the band to really wallow around in the muck. While the rhythm section lumbers along and the vocalist emits pure negativity (who even cares what he’s saying), both guitarists just kind of do their own thing—one plays sustained, feedback-y notes and the other alternates between noodly licks and half-assed rhythm guitar. It sounds like In My Head BLACK FLAG at half speed, but, like, way dumber—a fantastic little downer punk dirge to rival BLACK PANTIES or LIFE STINKS.