Reviews

For review and radio play consideration:

Please send vinyl (preferred), CD, or cassette releases to MRR, PO Box 3852, Oakland, CA 94609, USA. Maximum Rocknroll wants to review everything that comes out in the world of underground punk rock, hardcore, garage, post-punk, thrash, etc.—no major labels or labels exclusively distributed by major-owned distributors, no reviews of test pressings or promo CDs without final artwork. Please include contact information and let us know where your band is from!

Quid Quo Circle Walks in Circles LP

Seattle-based trio QUID QUO puts out a second full-length after 2017’s debut APAINTEDROOMISASMALLERROOM. They’ve got a post-hardcore, truncated rhythm sound going on that reminds me of the EVENS (but more distorted), with complimentary male/female vocals to boot. Zack Wait throws his voice around in a way that reminds me (slightly) of Jello Biafra, while Chelsea Gaddy does sound similar to Amy Farina (of the EVENS). “Lamps Plus at Dust” is my favorite of the fifteen songs on offer, with a hopeless chorus sung by Chelsea that repeats “On and then on and then / On and then on and then.” QUID QUO appears to be a hard-working lot, their Facebook page littered with show posters, playing with the likes of JAMES CHANCE AND THE CONTORTIONS, TOP DOWN, and UK GOLD, to name a few—so if you’re in the Seattle area, check ‘em out!

 

Rising Seas The War Within CD

A little bit AFI, a lot ANTI-FLAG. I bet they get the latter comparison often, being from Pittsburgh. Yeah, this thing rips. If you like fast-as-fuck political punk screamed at you in a melodic and brutal ballad, it’s this absolutely. The drums hit hard and are rapid-fucking-fire. Yup, there’s a little less room in the ANTI-FLAG-shaped hole in my heart. Oh, and introspective working class lyrics? Yeah, they got that too. I love this.

Schnaps Alles Verdampft LP

SCHNAPS gives us old school punk/hardcore with a lot of influences. I hear a little bit of NOFX-style guitar playing and some old school hardcore punk with a few ska parts which slow down and at times and remind me of the CLASH. I hear a lot of melody mixed in with the hardcore. If your favorite bands include the CLASH, TOY DOLLS, NOFX, RANCID, DAG NASTY, STRUNG OUT, ALL, and bands like that, you might want to check this out.

Slitasje Måndag Morgon LP

It’s pop, it’s punk, but it’s not pop punk. There’s definitely big, chunky power chords and plenty of melody. The rhythms bounce as much as they blast. There’s also a ton of lead guitar relative to most punk. The band’s sound is a well-oiled machine, and they occasionally deviate from a rigid punk format to slow down or spotlight only an instrument or two. The vocals are right up front, a choice usually reserved for those doing a bit more singing and a little less screaming, but here they command attention without choosing one over the other.

World Headquarters Unremitting Humiliation Ritual cassette

Gloomy garage punks versing on issues of scene critique and modernity’s existentialism. Monotonous and draggy, but very well-executed. This drone duo makes a plethora of sounds in a slow and steady cadence, but still manages to hold a driving force (barely). String section is well-seasoned though a bit overshadowed in the mix, and vocals are good, too. Undefined and a bit slow, yet interesting enough for some spins. Favorite tracks: “So Broke” and “King of the Scene.” Special mention to the solid straightforward lyrics, much needed nowadays.

YC-CY Wake Me Up Again EP

Phantom Records continues their mission to blanket the globe in oddball releases from the deepest recesses of the European punk underground. This time, we’re treated to some harsh synth punk from Switzerland. YC-CY has apparently been at it since the mid-2010s, but this four-song EP is the first I’m hearing from them. They play an odd mix of Ed Banger-esque maximalist French House, 2-step/UK garage, EBM, and melancholic darkwave. Tracks are constructed around drone-y but melodic baritone vocals buried under blankets of electronic squall. Imagine the SERFS, DAF, and KAVINSKY playing at the same time on top of a BOY HARSHER record. It’s not bad, and I certainly applaud their efforts to be this annoying while playing something this unpopular. But I doubt I’ll be dipping back in.

Arüspex Hawthorne & Henbane cassette

Neocrust from California, not too dissimilar to HIS HERO IS GONE or TRAGEDY. There’s definitely heavy doses of black metal in their sound as well. Personally, I’m not really a fan of the “stadium crust” sound, but these guys do it really well. Lots of interesting song structures and musical ideas that I appreciate. Music to soundtrack sprawling epics.

Bad Idea Breakout 12″

Listening to this BAD IDEA LP sent me down a rabbit hole for about an hour after I gave it a spin, as one of the songs in particular reminded me so much of a band whose name I just could not remember—I eventually found them, anyone remember a band called the BEATINGS from the early ’00s? Anyway, BAD IDEA sounds pretty good here, sort of NY proto-punk that dips into early ’80s hardcore, like if the DICTATORS and the MISFITS went out to lunch. “Bad Attitude” has CBGB written all over it, and “Massacre” has a little West Coast vibe going on. They go a little poppy for my taste on “Good to Die,” but otherwise this was an enjoyable spin.

Brain Squeeze / The Death Sentence split EP

Split release by BRAIN SQUEEZE and the DEATH SENTENCE. Tight, cranking the volume eleven, overdriven garage-y guitar sounds of turbulent, thrashing madness by two bands. Both bands do have the ultra-fast JERRY’S KIDS or GANG GREEN-style ’80s Boston hardcore sound, so it almost sounds like a release by one band. Time for circle pits and stagedives.

Broken Barcodes Brainwashed & Braindead CD

Pop-punk-ish growls, sneers, and power chords abound here. This is a really ubiquitous combo, but something about this CD feels distinctly ’90s. Maybe it’s the polished and poppy guitars sprinkled with a touch of Epitaph-style hardcore? Maybe it’s the cover? Maybe it’s the CD format? A good-natured, meatheaded ride.

Cheap Death Immaterial World cassette

Five songs of metal-infused modern hardcore from Brooklyn. The vocalist makes CHEAP DEATH sound very much like some kinda screamo/post-hardcore kind of band. It’s got a fair amount of blastbeats, if that’s your thing. What I don’t understand about hardcore bands that incorporate blastbeats in this way is that if the riffs are slow, the song still kinda sounds slow even with blastbeats filling up the drum portion, but maybe that’s just me. Perhaps this style of hardcore just isn’t really my cup of tea, but the songs are tight, the musicianship is solid, and the vocalist sounds strained and pissed.

Cult Crime Cult Crime demo cassette

More solid punk coming straight outta Toronto. This one is a nice, concise three-song affair. Tuneful, rocking punk. Sounds like something that could’ve come out of Southern California in the early ’80s. Catchy tunes that’ll get your head bobbing like a maniac. I really dig it!

DDT Brave New World EP reissue

Musical rescue for this Atlanta punk rock relic from 1983 filled with hints of no wave and even poppier sounds of the era, with a restored audio and mastering effort by Chunklet Records. Quite interesting to know about what was happening with punk rock and hardcore punk in Georgia 40 years ago. Lovers of archival releases will think it is a punk gem, as this shouts KBD all around.

Deviated Instinct As the Crow Flies: Collected Recordings 2012/17 CD

DEVIATED INSTINCT is an essential monolith for what we call crust punk, or more specifically, stenchcore. The genre, named after their 1986 Terminal Filth Stenchcore EP, perfected the mixture of the dark metal heaviness of VENOM, CELTIC FROST, and SABBATH with the dystopian “no future” sentiment of DISCHARGE and AMEBIX. Alongside AMEBIX, ANTISECT, and HELLBASTARD, their music has left a lasting impact on countless bands and played a significant role in shaping the distinctive crust sound we recognize today, crossing over into influencing some death metal and doom bands along the way. This seminal act disbanded in 1991, went on to form an industrial-esque version of their sound with side project SPINE WRENCH but reunited in 2007, thus beginning a new chapter in their career. As the Crow Flies is a collection of all the music released since the band got back together. It includes songs from Husk, Liberty Crawls…to the Sanctuary of Slaves, and Dance of the Plague Bearer. Overall, the songs sound like their trademark, but with a more modern sounding production. It is an important piece of crust history.

Eärthdögs Distorted Static Addicts EP

Fuck me, this is one intense listen, and I am not sure where to start. First thing first: this is very noisy and chaotic. Dementia-driven. This is not something you’d get your little cousin for his birthday (unless he is possessed by some evil force). EÄRTHDÖGS play insane and vicious, black-metal-influenced, raw, distorted hardcore noisepunk. Distorted Static Addicts feels more like an experience than just a record, and with less than ten minutes of music, you can’t afford to be late to the fuzzy black mass. I love the genuinely malignant vibe of the record and the overall aggression, especially how energetic and noisy it is. The music sounds like it hates you, and that’s paradoxically what makes it lovable. It is difficult to properly describe even though the ingredients, taken separately, are familiar, but I guess that if a savage powerviolence record were possessed by ORDER OF THE VULTURE and if you distorted the result further, it would be quite close. Solid and furious. You should probably get it for your cousin, actually. This was released on two labels that specialize in these sorts of nasty things, 625 and To Live a Lie.

Gimic We Are Making a New World EP

Listen, I hate being hyperbolic, especially when it comes to record reviews. How are you going to take my word at face value if I constantly tell you how so-and-so’s newest album is the greatest thing I’ve heard all year? It’d be like the boy who cries wolf, except with punk music instead of a man-eating beast. Anyway, GIMIC’s newest single is easily the greatest thing I’ve heard all year. I have no other way to describe this other than post-post-punk. It’s like if you took BOW WOW WOW and threw them into a vat of toxic waste. Dance-y enough to groove to, while simultaneously being manic enough to have a complete and total meltdown in the pit. Guitar and bass are clean with a little bit of distorted twang. Very natural and classic. The tone reminds me of the ADVANTAGE while having a math rock edge. Absolutely worth picking up for your summer jams playlist and beyond.

The Mob 40’s The Mob 40’s LP

The MOB 40’S have a lot of elements of an Oi! band, but it’s probably more apt to call them street punk, or even hardcore. The production quality is good, even on the three demos that round out the album. All their songs have a lot of heft and can be pretty brutal from time to time. This isn’t something I would choose to listen to, but for those of you into things heavy, fast, and somewhat melodic, this is up your alley. I will say it looks like one of the members of the MOB 40’S used to be in NORTH SIDE KINGS, fronted by a goblin human who punched Glenn Danzig once. Not counting that against them, but it doesn’t help that I think their songs are kinda boring. Well-executed, but nothing exciting to me.

The Nerve Curlers 3-Song Sampler cassette

Debut three-song cassette release out of Houston, Texas. Catchy, poppy, indie-infused punk-adjacent rock music. Something about the vocal styling and delivery really reminds me of the LEMONHEADS, though I wouldn’t say the band particularly sounds like them. The band self-describes the release with the tags “psychedelic,” “surf-rock,” and “post-punk,” but I gotta say, I wouldn’t use any of those terms to describe them. Sure, there’s a bit of tremolo on the guitars, but that’s the closest thing to surf I hear, and these are like mid-to-fast-paced pop punk songs more than they’re post-punk—that’s just one punk’s opinion, I suppose. Regardless of how you want to categorize it, I have had the chorus of “God Hates You (Sylvia Plath Style)” stuck in my head for multiple days straight now.

Panikatax A Sudden and Unpleasant Change cassette

This may be a tape-only release on a DIY label, but to unfurl its glossy, multi-panel J-card, you’d think it the work of a real big-baller operation. Took me right back to the ’90s and stretching my pocket money further by purchasing my favoured grunge albums on the cheapest available format, I can tell you. Dubious nostalgia aside, these five songs are a welcome introduction to the dramatic, halfway psychedelic noise rock rumblings of PANIKATAX from Dublin. Big BIRTHDAY PARTY proto-psychobilly rhythms, JESUS LIZARD/FALL/COWS vocal slobbering, and a shit-ton of studio FX, to the extent I assumed there was a synth player in the band until I checked the credits. The B-side of the tape has a live set which is unavailable digitally and has seven songs, all different to the ones on the A-side.

Riot Division …The Album CD

The latest album from Richmond, Indiana’s (not Virginia’s) RIOT DIVISION. Artwork looks like an obscure energy drink, or locally-produced beef jerky package you can get at a desolate gas station in the middle of nowhere America. The sound isn’t too far off from that: some early crossover thrash metal and death metal influences that probably had some sort of weird impact on the creation of nu metal, but that’s not too important. For fans of Monster Energy, Full Throttle, No Fear, etc.

Skint Skint demo cassette

SKINT is like a breath of fresh air in the midst of a nuclear eruption. Back-to-basics hardcore punk just how I like it: ugly, tough, and menacing. Four songs and a couple of samples, this demo hits hard with few frills and all thrills. The riffs are unbothered by complication or harmony, going straight for the carotid and dousing the room in arterial spray. The focused, tight drumming often blasts full bore, and changes beats or tempos at all the right moments. There’s a touch of UK82 in the rabid vocal delivery, with concise yet compelling lyrics. No ambiguity here, SKINT is out for blood. This is a killer first showing. The tape is limited to a hundred copies…grab one while you can.

The Sleeveens The Sleeveens LP

The SLEEVEENS are garage punk done cracking, in the typical spirit of Dirtnap. I have not run across this band before, but it turns out they are a dual-citizen team from both Nashville and Dublin. Solid record throughout, with a killer cover of the UNDERTONES’ “Get Over You.”  “Metallica Font” is another toe-tapper. The rest of the lot is pretty run-of-the-mill, beer-sudsed basement anthems.

Spanish Needles Sifting Through the Wreckage 12″

Debut EP from SPANISH NEEDLES of St. Petersburg, Florida, delivering some melodic peace punk. Not exactly sure what the lyrics are trying to convey besides a generally downcast attitude alluded to in the EP title, but it’s made unclear by the songs that are named after comedians/comedy actors from George Carlin to Mary Steenburgen. The production is clean and polished, much like the melodic vocals and tight song structures. “Michael Cera” is probably my pick of the lot, singing “Bide your time with figments of your imagination, / Tell me, is this how it’s going to be until you die?” with a decided bleakness. Nothing life-altering happening here, and I’m a little hung up on the seemingly meaningless song titles—otherwise, a solid debut on display.

Tensö La Pataleta EP

TENSÖ is a punk band from Tenerife. I saw them play last year, and while this is a record (not a show) review, they look, behave, and sound the same live as they do on record. They have such a natural theatrical element that is rare, even if punk tends to act out—and yet, that sort of blasé nihilism paired with anger can make great punk songs. This record blasts of with two rather hardcore-sounding songs that remain melodic, but such sharp shocks are paired with the other half of the record containing mid-tempo, desperate tracks that show how their more laid-back, stretched-out, and more melodic songs could still not be tamed and are still snotty as hell. It’s an area where most punk rock bands fail, but TENSÖ owns this field. Four songs in two different styles, yet still consistent. Such a great band!

Vacation Rare Earth LP

Plenty of folks seem to really dig this long-running Cincinnati act, and the band managed to wow Feel It, a label with unassailable tastes, into putting out this album, so I’m going to assume I’m just missing something…because I fucking hated this record. This came as a genuine surprise to me considering that some of the folks involved in its making have also been responsible for some of my absolute favorite projects of the last few years, like the DRIN and BEEF. But the twelve tracks that make up Rare Earth bear little if any resemblance to those acts. In its best moments, I can hear snatches of things that I enjoy, like the poppiness of a Ric Ocasek or Alex Chilton tune, wed to things I definitely don’t, like emo-adjacent post-hardcore (think BRAID or the PROMISE RING) or the REPLACEMENTS at their alt-rockiest. In its worst moments, it sounds like “Rockstar” by JIMMY EAT WORLD. It’s earnest pop rock that sounds like it’s being played by a band that wants to make it big, specifically in the year 1997. A track like “Mobility” even sounds like it could have been pulled off the VERVE’s Urban Hymns. To be fair, these guys do what they do well—the songwriting is tight and it all sounds slick as shit—and I know folks love all of the stuff I mention above. But it just takes me back to a period of time that I consider to be among the most vapid and shitty for music. I don’t know, maybe I’ve just failed to embrace the power of rock’n’roll or whatever these dudes are selling. I’d probably feel better if I did.

The Web Slivers, Shards, and Tell-Tale Hearts LP

There’s something to be said for the small luxury of listening to the physical copy of a release while simultaneously writing its review, and I’m doing just that for this piece of gold. The WEB were a deathrock band that existed from the early ’80s to the early ’90s. They spun their sonic web with a sound reminiscent of 45 GRAVE, but with more surf guitar and a stronger gothic vibe. This LP collects sixteen songs from their career and presents them in a relatively chronological order. Tongue-in-cheek lyrics highlight indifference towards religion, suffering, and overcoming struggle. Inside the sleeve you’ll find a 9″x11″ folded zine-style lyric sheet with some great photos of the band and some dedications to members who have passed. This record is absolutely going to stay at the top of my stack for a long while, and will probably become a staple of my collection.

Attic Ted Starfish as Man LP

And the prize for worst band name goes to…ATTIC TED. Look, I was primed to really dislike this album. It doesn’t look like something I’d want to listen to. The name of the album is Starfish as Man, for chrissake! To my reluctant surprise, it’s not a bad needle drop after all. ATTIC TED has made a pretty charming post-punk record in the vein of ALTERNATIVE, MAGAZINE, or SUBWAY SECT, with some kraut-y avant garde elements pushing the affair towards the experimental end of the spectrum. Starfish as Man is sprinkled with spacey synthesizers and atmospheric, at times operatic vocal melodies. I presume that these folks have taken plenty of drugs to make music to take drugs to…or however it was that SPACEMEN 3 phrased it. Despite my negative predisposition, ATTIC TED has concocted a substantial freak-pop album that I can’t deny has a disturbingly catchy appeal.

The Battlebeats Meet Your Maker LP

A one-man garage rock tour de force from Bandung, Indonesia, Andresa Nugraha has been putting out records under the BATTLEBEATS moniker since 2019. His last full-length was the pre-pandemic album Search and Destroy. which was released by Alien Snatch. There is the speed and precision of TEENGENERATE with the power of GUITAR WOLF throughout the dozen tracks here. Lyrically, there’s the humor, wit, and self-awareness of some of Paul Caporino’s best work with M.O.T.O. With all of this, Nugraha has created his own sound and style which keeps evolving and improving with every release.

Betonwelt Betonwelt cassette

Hamburg band BETONWELT answers the question, “what would a perfect balance of anarcho-punk, post-punk, and hardcore sound like?” The answer: it sounds awesome! Wildly distorted guitars, lyrics shouted in multiple languages, and a rhythm section that pounds out the beat make this self-titled well worth a listen. The second track “Burning” introduces the hardcore feel, while “Depression” goes even harder with a racing opening and grimy, plodding midsection. The closing track “Alone” almost feels like it could have been a ROLLINS BAND recording. Most of the thirteen tracks on this album contain a great sing-along chorus, which must make the live performances amazing.

Brain Itch The Future Burns cassette

Pretty solid mid-pace-ish D-beat from Toronto. The production isn’t quite as raw as I would personally prefer, but the tunes still deliver the goods. Lots of solid riffage here. There’s no song shorter than two minutes, but all the tunes manage to keep your attention the whole time. I like it!

CarlxJohnson Hesoyam LP

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas-themed powerviolence straight out of Slovenia. Wow, now that’s a sentence I never thought I’d type. Regardless, this whole slab rips. Brings to mind HEWHOCORRUPTS, MAN IS THE BASTARD, SPAZZ, and the like. There’s also a FUCK ON THE BEACH cover nestled at the end. Fantastic stuff here, and well worth a spin if you’re a fan of the tongue-in-cheek grindcore from the late ’90s/early ’00s.

Chinese Telephones Outta My Hands EP

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 Dishrags Four LP

Part two of Supreme Echo’s reissue campaign for Vancouver-via-Victoria punks the DISHRAGS comes a decade after 2014’s Three LP (which collected recordings from 1978 and 1979) and picks up the story in 1980, the final year of the band’s existence. The DISHRAGS’ reputation as one of the first all-female punk bands in North America (if not the first) generally precedes them, but what is so often lost in that narrative is that they were also one of the earliest Canadian punk bands, full stop—they started out as high school teens in 1976 and literally played the first punk show ever in Vancouver! Absolute legends. Four gathers a number of demos and live tracks previously unavailable on vinyl, along with the three songs from the group’s swan-song Death in the Family EP, and although the DISHRAGS didn’t undergo any dramatic stylistic shifts during their brief run, there’s a streak of artful introspection in this later material that wasn’t as evident in the snotty and sneering first-wave-influenced punk of the years covered on Three. The economical instrumental scrappiness and personal/poetic lyrical outlook in tracks like “You Fit the Picture” and “Silence” recalls fellow late ’70s/early ’80s Pacific Northwest femme-punks NEO BOYS, while the more revved-up rippers like “Beware of Dog” and “Carry On” have the DISHRAGS careening out of the gate in an almost Dangerhouse-ish fashion (think DILS/BAGS). It’s killer!

Earth Crust Displacement Under the Surface EP

Raw punk crasher crust for Berlin. EARTH CRUST DISPLACEMENT kicks plenty of ass—distorted to deafness, just to my liking. Pure FRAMTID/PHYSIQUE-style blasting D-beat while still having killer tunes to back it up. Very pleasantly surprised with how much this slays. Highly recommend to anyone into DISCLOSE-esque noise destruction.

Filthy Traitors Date Night CD

Driving, pounding punk rock delivered with female vocals that are both pretty and powerful, kind of reminding me of Kim Deal. Musically, it’s melodic, but with a healthy dose of frenetic energy. At times, it borders on metal, which ain’t my cup of tea, man. And, in keeping with the metal theme, sometimes just a little too much extracurricular guitar work.

Honolulu High Plays the Secret Names cassette

HONOLULU HIGH is a three-piece garage band from C-town. Plays the Secret Names seems to be the band’s debut full-length, aside from a previous release of demos. The songs are punchy and distorted cries to days long gone, a drunken high school reunion. These cats are reliving their glory years all over this thing. Kind of reminds me of DIE ZORROS with Guy Picciotto at the wheel.

Krupps Sport for All cassette

KRUPPS, from Nottingham, play an often fun sort of music (primitive post-punk) and bring good cheer as a live band (or did, to me, when I saw them), so it’s stuck with me just how miserable-sounding the album-length tape they did before this one, which is their third in total, was. Sport for All turns the dial back a bit towards merriment, helped perhaps by songs playing heavily ironic tribute to Peter Shilton (retired football goalkeeper/hero to Nottingham people of a certain age/unwavering supporter of the Conservative Party/moron) and Saddam Hussain (you know). Alan Martin is a great post-Mark E. Smith off-the-dome ranter waiting to be discovered by a wider audience, and the KRUPPS engine room kicks out just the right kind of stumbling dirge jams for his tale-telling—COUNTRY TEASERS, BOGSHED, pre-album PAVEMENT kinda thing. Real people music, and real great.

Lost Legion Behind the Concrete Veil LP

Chicago’s LOST LEGION is a fixture in the punk/Oi! scene here, and for good reason. In what is becoming a more and more crowded scene, these guys excel not only in their live performances, but also on the strength of their recorded output, particularly their latest LP Behind the Concrete Veil. Sonically, the record sounds great, the vocals are gravelly and rough, the bass is nasty and overdriven, the guitars cut like a knife, and the drums are locked in from start to finish. It’s a visceral mix of Oi! and street punk with some deathrock and post-punk sprinkled in, resulting in a sound that can certainly appeal to punks and skins of all shapes and sizes. More importantly than all of that, the songwriting is superb. This is a strongly anti-capitalist record that does a hell of a job intelligently exploring themes of human disconnect, anxiety, and internal struggle in a way that feels a little more thoughtful than your average punk record. At least a quarter of the songs reference losing humanity and further drifting away from the natural; on “War Machine,” vocalist Ian admits “I don’t know what you expect from me / I don’t get to think / You built a war machine.” On “Animals We Used to Be,” there’s a sense of nostalgia for a time before “they clipped our tails and they gave us all new names.” Elsewhere, there’s disdain for cellphones (“Staring Down the Valley”) and meaningless work (“Disposed”), and on the anti-police “Silhouettes in Blue Light,” the band forgoes the usual “fuck the police” rallying cry, and instead explores the trajectory of someone inevitably ending up becoming a cop through familial encouragement and evolution. These are commonly found themes in this genre, but are communicated so cleverly here—I highly recommend reading the lyrics as you listen along. This is a great rock album, but it’s also an intimate and personal record that many of us can probably relate to at the moment. After all, isn’t that what this music is all about?

Mirage Legato Alla Rovina 12″

I reviewed MIRAGE’s demo, which was a good introduction but mostly made me wish to hear something more, bigger, refined. Here they are with an LP, released again by Roachleg. The record sounds big and hyper-energetic with enough nasty noise, and the music is hectic: guitars and drums racing with each other while certain riffs reach back and forth beyond power chords, using a lot of feedback, dumb-but-great melodies, and fingers walking on strings as drunk spiders. Loud, often spoken-sung agitation with a bucketful of despair to vary the vocals. They are able to mix the obvious Italian influences well with their own manic ideas. It sounds modern for sure, but the bleak modernity did not infect this record—it is balanced between an homage to a scene far away (both in time and distance) and a present-day hardcore rager. This record is fucking great!

Noose Sweat Murder Suicide EP

Vancouver deep-wounder powerviolence, with heavy grindcore stances, insanity-driven vocals, and the sweetest characteristic couplings at the start and end of every song, as it should be in this not-music war. Crazy riffage and madmen drums to the core. Sonically harsh and relentlessly passionate execution—you can feel the intensity brought by the band, almost achieving a live gig vibe. Interesting, and could be in a looped spin for some time as the songs average 30 seconds each.

Punky Tunes We Are in the Future CD

I’m nearly 40 and have listened to a lot of skate punk. It’s extremely formulaic, lots of hi-hat/snare doodle-bap, and typically singing about girls, booze, and boards. Not PUNKY TUNES. For me, they’re incredibly refreshing. This is the kind of punk that attracted me to the DIY umbrella long ago. First off, their singer Marie has a strong voice with a clear tone and excellent range. PUNKY TUNES is a five-piece from France, but they sing in English. They even have their own band theme song! Bands like the BOLLWEEVILS, GROOVIE GHOULIES, and the LILLINGTONS all have songs where they mention the band name in the song, some even spelling them out. PUNKY TUNES does this with the song “Punky Family,” but it doesn’t feel well-worn or tired. This group has a refreshing passion for making good music in a genre that has been trying to stay young and relevant since its beginning. PUNKY TUNES is checking a lot of boxes for me. They’re political on purpose, catchy, dynamic, talented, and it comes through their music that they really give a shit about what they preach. Their website proudly calls out their “anti-fascist, pro-feminist, animal-friendly, LBGT+, Earth protection, and DIY values.” By the way, their 7 SECONDS cover on this record is fabulous. I also highly recommend you listen to their RANCID cover of “Fall Back Down.” Honestly, everything I’ve heard from their catalog is a certified banger.

Rearview Rhonda Glutton for Bad Energy CD

With two EPs in the rearview mirror, REARVIEW RHONDA looks ahead to their first LP Glutton for Bad Energy. Hailing proudly from Bloomington, Indiana, Stefanie Boucher leads this gang with vocals and a bass, having the venom of BIKINI KILL on songs like “Disconnect” while balancing with softer tendencies on “Catapult,” which features clean guitar strums and a slower gait, even including a saxophone and synth near the end. Endless riffing throughout backed by splashy drums and Stephanie’s carefree attitude keeps this CD on repeat for me—a truly great debut full-length.

Sam Snitchy Talking Talking CD

The label’s Bandcamp page describes this act as “anti-dance,” but I don’t know about that. This sounds pretty dance-oriented to me. The songs are long and repetitive, so it seems like they’re designed as such. I could see this being pretty hot at your local underground goth club. I don’t mean to be the MRR snitch here (no pun intended), but I would barely even consider this punk-adjacent. I guess it has sort of a PiL feel to it, but it sounds more like SHE WANTS REVENGE or something you’d hear on ’00s alternative radio. Not a lot of interesting stuff going on here. It’s dry and a tad boring. Who knows, maybe I’m just in the wrong setting. Might sound better at a dark warehouse party after a couple drinks. In my present state, though, it’s a slog to get through.

Sea Urchin Destroy! cassette

A ten-song novelty rock opera written during and about the end of a relationship. I’ll pause this review for a moment while the reader recovers from the involuntary massive eye-roll that I, myself, also experienced when I put together exactly what this album was. Now that you’re back with me, I gotta say, my initial perception softened greatly once I was a few songs deep into this album. SEA URCHIN does a surprisingly good job meandering from subgenre to subgenre incredibly fluidly, often within the course of a single song. From ’50s rock’n’roll to pop punk to stoned-out heavy ’70s hard rock, they hit all points in between. Is it brilliant? Probably not. But is it as goofy as it initially seemed? Absolutely not. Songwriting and musicianship are pretty spot-on, and some of these songs are actually killer. Specifically, the song “Rock!” is wildly heavy and doesn’t sound like it was recorded in the last 50 years. How I found myself getting a little emotional during a song entitled “I Beefed It (On My Motorbike)” is absolutely beyond me—perhaps in part due to the fact that as a youth, the first cassette tape I ever bought with my own money was MEAT LOAF’s Bat Out of Hell II, and this song legit sounds like Jim Steinman could have written it. I don’t think I would go see the musical, were it all to be realized, but then again, getting to see some of these songs performed live might be worth it.

Sex Mex 23 LP

San Antonio-based SEX MEX, the solo project of Clark Gray turned full touring band, brings us another compilation of previous 2023 releases. This definitely has the vocal distortion and itchy synth lines of a bedroom project, so much so that when I dropped the needle on the opener “New Girl,” I thought my turntable was playing at 45 rpm. Settling into the reality of this fast, lo-fi mania, I found genuinely catchy power pop songs, ultimately preferring the A-side that contains three of the four tracks from the Double Bubble Blowout cassette (the fourth track is on the B-side). The B-side features songs from the We’re a Happy Family cassette, as well as “Better Off Dead” and “Electric Chair” which both made the preceding album Sex Mex 22. And while “Electric Chair” keeps making the cut for these compilations, I think songs like “Bloody Lip” and “Sadie” set a higher bar for the band. Looking back on SEX MEX’s discography, Clark Gray is really trying to build an iconography of his face on the album covers with sort of a middle school Myspace aesthetic, and the music itself seems to be a lot of repacking of songs and albums, to the extent that in April of this year, they put out Repackaged, which is just that. All of these things make me dislike this band, and then I listen to the music and get lost in the bubblegum ecstasy of some glitter-and-balloon party that I can’t help but enjoy. You decide.

Steve Carface Familiar Traps CD

A shambolic, wild sound. The sound of a punk band knocking over a dish rack. Some songs tear ahead with basement show abandon, while songs like “Void” feature a slow, almost FLIPPER-like lurch. The band sounds all over the place, but I suspect all those bum notes and ringing crash cymbals could be intentional. Either way, the sound is convincing and compelling, although a half an hour is a long time to keep things at such a fever pitch.

Trenchkoat Apocalypse Hits LP

London/Freiburg punks TRENCHKOAT’s latest LP from Kentucky’s Big Neck Records. Eclectic mix of twelve tracks ranging from POISON IDEA-like ’80s hardcore punk to something RIKK AGNEW would have written with his mid-tempo songs. At times, there is some dark RUDIMENTARY PENI-ness with rather screechy, almost black-metal-sounding vocals that unfortunately sit pretty high in the mix. Still, a hard-to-describe, unique-sounding release with a cool approach. Looking forward to more future output from this band (maybe even a remixed/remastered version of this release).

Unpleasant Controlled Demolition cassette

Lo-fi, bedroom-recorded, bass-and-drum-machine outsider music project from Milwaukee, WI. The six songs, which are sandwiched between weirdo noise/experimental intro and outro, seem to dabble in a wide array of different punk subgenres. I get the impression that the attempt is some sort of anarcho RUDIMENTARY PENI-style craziness, but it doesn’t always come across like that in any way other than the strained vocal delivery. There’s a couple interesting songs, though. In particular, “Bed of Lettuce” is wittily written and would appeal to a bunch of modern egg-punk lovers. It is a bit of a departure from the rest of the strong, politically leftist lyrics of the originals, not that you’ll hear me complain about that—I also hate war and fascists and billionaires and the monotony of capitalism. All in all, it’s interesting, and not entirely UNPLEASANT, aside from the choice of covers. The MONSULA (’90s Lookout! Records) cover ends up sounding way more emo than early pop-punk-inspired. I’m unfamiliar with the other cover song, which is of a band called the THOUGHT of whom I couldn’t find any info, but the cover feels like a drum machine rendition of a folk-punk song.

Vile Cherubs Lysergic Lamentations LP

VILE CHERUBS were one of the great teenage punk bands of the latter half of the ’80s, an out-of-time unit whose moment has finally come. Recorded by GRAY MATTER’s Geoff Turner in his garage (a.k.a. WGNS Studios), this LP remixes and remasters the legendary The Man Who Has No Eats Has No Sweats cassette onto its proper format. It’s frankly astonishing that a pack of high school kids could lay down these moody, intricate songs with such convincing authority and keen aesthetic sense. Hot off Revolution Summer’s aftermath, VILE CHERUBS looked through a glass darkly, and liked what they saw—Nuggets filtered through Flex Your Head. Bassist Seth Lorinczi channels John Entwhistle’s domineering style, providing big fat lines for the band to latch on to, while guitarist (and latter-day sonic restorer) Tim Green cranks the YARDBIRDS’ amps with hardcore’s take-no-prisoners attitude. Yet Lysergic Lamentations transcends being “merely” ripping punk with garage trappings—VILE CHERUBS peered hard through the 13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS’ kaleidoscope, opening up their third eyes with youthful abandon and delivering a lost classic ripe for rediscovery.

Wasserdicht Prihajamo V Miru LP

With a name like this, I was expecting some kind of corny Deutschpunk band, but I was wrong, and, if the feeling is never pleasant, I was still glad to deal with a band from Slovenia, as it is not a scene I often have the opportunity to explore. WASSERDICHT seem to have been active from 1994 until the mid-’00s, and this is their comeback record, so I assume they must be, or have been anyway, quite famous at home. The band belongs to the generation of ’90s bands like PIZDA MATERNA and other Balkan bands like NULA, HOCU? NECU!, or BAD JUSTICE, a little-known wave (if you are not local) that clearly deserves to be documented. I have to confess that upon seeing the cover, I was not expecting to like Prihajamo v Miru (meaning “we come in peace”), but this is a decent effort. WASSERDICHT plays heavy, beefy, direct hardcore with great gruff vocals reminiscent of ’80s Swedish bands like SVART PARAD or AVSKUM. I think the band is solid when the music goes fast with an old school touch (an almost Scandinavian vibe at times) as that is where the band sounds the most intense, but the slower songs lose me a little. The lyrics are all in Slovenian, which contributes to making the record sound even angrier. Pretty good indeed.