Drug Czars Compendium CD
With nineteen studio tracks and eight live cuts, this CD compiles what I believe is the entire recorded output of ’90s South Florida weirdos DRUG CZARS. Commandeered by former members of the EAT and ROACH MOTEL, the band played punchy outsider rock with indie and pseudo-country inflections. The tunes cover a wide spectrum of energies. Some display a driving kind of post-punk, but then they’ll break out into the rootsy hardcore of “God’s Got a Gun,” slip into a sordid din like on “Let’s Go Satan,” or reveal a Doc Dart-esque sinister side on “Someday I’ll Crush Them All Like Bugs.” They also do some covers ranging from JEFFERSON AIRPLANE to WIRE, and some of the best songs here are buried in the raw sound of the live recordings. It’s dank and infectious stuff, a strangely compelling soup that may appeal to fans of later-era GUN CLUB and THOMAS JEFFERSON SLAVE APARTMENTS.