Olexi Rock N’ Roll Paint Job cassette
Fun, scrappy solo project from Buffalo, New York that runs through alt/rock and garage punk with wild creative abandon. OLEXI’s shouted/spoken vocals sound like a mix of URANIUM CLUB and BIG BLACK, dripping with world-weary cynicism and humor. There is a freewheeling spirit to these songs, with sarcastic lyrics touching on issues of both small importance (“This is a song in A / This is a song in A” in “A,” and “Fuck cops / Go Bills!” in the fist-pumping anthem “Buffalo Fight Song”) and large (the rejection of false allyship and tokenism in “I’m Not Your Queer”). This collection is not especially rooted down to any one punk subgenre, with some tracks, like the multi-textured “Four Letter Word,” sounding like peak ’90s above-ground SONIC YOUTH, while others like “I Remember” take cues from the intricate rhythms of the MINUTEMEN. Enjoyable listen with personality to spare. According to OLEXI’s Bandcamp page, there will be a release every month, and with this amount of ideas and energy, count me in.