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!

Science Man Nines Mecca LP

This band first caught my attention when it was just a one-person project. John Toohill (singer) has since put together a group of like-minded curiosities to record with him on Nines Mecca. The album connects the dots between MC5 and ELECTRIC CHAIR with some metal riffing to carry the weight. Might sound more interesting than it actually is? There is not a ton of variety, as the album’s tracks list all bleed into one another. Standouts for me would be the “The Sign” and “Old Timer,” which offer a bit of refuge from monotony and display a level of vocal terror that could chum around with a young Jerry A. Would be interested to see how the new group continues to formulate.

Second Layer Courts or Wars LP

In the late ’70s and early ’80s, Adrian Borland and Graham Bailey of gloomy UK post-punks the SOUND were simultaneously making music as the duo SECOND LAYER, leaving the SOUND’s peacoats-and-clove-cigarettes atmosphere behind to conduct some SUICIDE-schooled, end-times electro-punk exorcisms. Courts or Wars compiles SECOND LAYER’s output up to their 1981 LP/final release World of Rubber (1979’s Flesh as Property EP, 1980’s State of Emergency EP, and five orphaned tracks)—almost everything here was also included in Dark Entries’ expanded 2015 reissue of World of Rubber, so not exactly unturned stones, and the real highs come from the pair of EPs. Borland does his best menacing Alan Vega whisper over Bailey’s sparse, ice-cold synth/rhythm box strobe on “Metal Sheet,” “Courts or Wars” layers fuzzed-to-oblivion guitar and primitive drum machine drone like 39 CLOCKS without the ’60s garage obsession, and “State of Emergency” clatters through a dystopian techno-hell very similar to the one that CABARET VOLTAIRE’s “Nag Nag Nag” stalked just a year prior; “Split Screen” is the unreleased keeper, with a cracked, unrelenting mechanical disco beat and Borland’s echo-submerged vocals wavering like transmissions from a shortwave radio in some bombed-out bunker. Maniacally monochrome as all get-out.

Skotos Demo 2022 cassette

A three-piece from NYC (I believe Brooklyn) playing a harsh racket of powerviolence mixed with chaotic D-beat. The unsettling feedback is intentional, and it works. The recording is gritty, noisy, and reduced to fragmented moments or lo-fi raw punk arrangements. “Concealed Carry” is a three-minute macabre dance through hardcore with blown-out psychedelic punk and maybe even droning blackened crust. I really like what SKOTOS is doing; it’s different and dark and sincere. For only being a three-piece, they bring a lot of ominous clatter and weirdness, while echoing some NYHC breakdowns and squat-show bleak punk.

Suspex Suspex demo cassette

Hailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia, SUSPEX belts out five tracks of UK82-influenced punk, including a PARTISANS cover. Despite the technically deficient drumming and a fairly annoying “always on” guitar effect, I can’t help but to be charmed by this demo. It’s clear from the jump that SUSPEX are really pouring themselves into these songs. The charismatic vocal delivery is the linchpin here, injecting both character and energy. “Dead City” is a prime example; the harrowing shouts soar above the din of the instruments, giving the entire affair a boost. It strikes me that SUSPEX sounds like they’re having a blast playing their songs. What a novel concept! This gets a (circled) A for effort from me.  

The Tacks The Tacks LP

Debut LP from Christchurch, NZ’s the TACKS. This five-piece identifies as a goth band, but comes across with broader influences of post-punk, darkwave, and dance-y new wave. I think it sounds like a horror lullaby, and it’s wonderful. The female vocalist leads the group with catchy, concise melodies, and the band achieves a cohesion amongst fast chord changes, rests, and tireless guitar leads. The self-titled cassette they put out in 2020 is much rougher-around-the-edges punk (and is worth a listen), but I don’t mind the polish that was put on this Rockstar release. I think fans of CRIME OF PASSING will take to this, and generally anyone who likes “1980s college radio,” as the band suggests. Tune in.

Warhawk Pray for War LP

Sweaty, denim-vest hard rock from Sweden. Like MOTÖRHEAD meets the HELLACOPTERS, WARHAWK mixes classic NWOBHM and psych-influenced guitar leads with fist-pumping riffs. While this record could have come out any time in the last 40 years, it sounds fresh and raucous. “Watch Out” lays down a pummeling D-beat with relentless riffing. “Devils Dust” conjures Lemmy’s immortal energy and does him justice. Really, there’s not a dud in the mix, as long as you like this particular mode of full-speed greasy rockin’. I feel like you already know if this is for you. If you’re into conversion vans with airbrushed wizards, choppers, and raw rock‘n’roll, you’ll dig this.

Wax Wax demo cassette

Here’s a new band from Brooklyn, New York. WAX plays hardcore punk with an especially loud and aggressive approach. The vocal style has a particularly howling, tortured quality to it. While it generally isn’t anything that you haven’t heard before, if you’re a fan of that strain of pissed-off and tortured HC punk, you can’t go wrong with this one. All in all, a very promising debut release that is worth your attention.

V/A KOSM 2xLP

From appearances, I thought I had another French D-beat compilation on my hands, but I stand corrected! While still French, the four bands presented here (KARNAGE, OMG, STAKANOV, and MEMORIAL VOICE) all seem to glean influence from the immortal METAL URBAIN, copping their harsh guitars, haywire drum machines, and venomous vocal attack. If you’re a Francophilic punk who has already already worn through your copies of the BIPPP or Paink comps, this will probably be worth your while.

Alteri / Gr​ä​nslandet split LP

Issued in October 2022 by Phobia Records, a label based in the Czech Republic, this split presents bands from Germany and Sweden. ALTERI from Cologne, Germany offers a synthesis of blackened crust closer to death metal, with deep and low but also high gutturals, sludgy bass lines, and guitars that sometimes resemble math rock sounds, cutting with precision. The songs are filled with tempo changes and parts achieving complexity. Suggested track: “Verlorene Staedte.” On the Sweden side, we have GRÄNSLANDET from Kristinehamn, delivering their D-beat with deep, sludgy strings and fast cadences, good riffy guitar solos, and controlled yet strong screams plus great drums. Good work with the doom feel that gives a trance-like feeling at moments. Suggested track: “Historiens Mantra.” Appropriate selection for a split, with the bands having things in common. Recommended for blackened crust and metal enthusiasts.

Arr​ê​t Arr​ê​t demo cassette

Brand new post-punk outfit from Los Angeles with a two-song demo. Cavernous reverb on female vocals with vibrant riffs and chugging bass and drums. The opener “Pandemonium” offers up the cheery chorus “Pandemonium / Done deal / It’s been decided now / Nothing’s real,” which feels like a good summary of the world. “Démolir,” or “demolish” in English, counters the A-side with a more hands-on approach required to move the “done deal[s]” stagnant needle. Without much info on this new group, I’m not sure where the French influence/origins come from, but all said, the aesthetic, the sound—I’m all in, looking for more! 1753 has other L.A. groups putting out small-run cassettes, worth a quick look.

Barren Soil Barren Soil cassette

As you would be right to presume, BARREN SOIL do not play ’90s revival skacore; there aren’t any ska puns in their songs nor, as far as I can tell, any pork pie hats. Thank fuck for that. This Vancouver-based unit, as the grim and sadly realistic moniker gives away (a reference to a line from NAUSEA’s “Extinction”?), does not deal in cheerfulness—BARREN SOIL is an unstoppable metal crust bulldozer. We have been quite blessed (or cursed, depending on your point of view) with quality stenchcore music in the past couple of years, and this band definitely sits on the top shelf. This tape is their first recording, but the sound is amazing; it has a heavy, thick production but still keeps that specific nasty, dirty edge. The three-piece definitely knows what they are doing, and what they aim at creating and destroying with these eight songs (in fifteen minutes, an appropriate length for the genre). BARREN SOIL sounds like a brawl between deranged bears. It is an indelicate blend of NUCLEAR DEATH TERROR, mid 2010s CANCER SPREADING, and early ANGUISH, with grizzly vocals, some rotten, groovy FROST-like mid-paced bits, and even proper old-school blast beats, which I salute. So crusty it bites. I actually counted that the singer shouts the word “crust” six times on this recording, so there is one “crust” every 180 seconds on average (as a comparison, Oi! bands usually shout “oi!” every 55 seconds). Ace. The artwork, courtesy of Mike Roberts from GENOGEIST, fills the apocalyptic crust template to a T, too. This gem is a self-released tape, but it would certainly deserve a vinyl reissue. Now grab your crust pants and play this loud.

Class Epoca de Los Vaqueros LP

Call it hometown pride, but Tucson has really been showing up lately on the broad landscape of excellent rock‘n’roll. This crew in particular is a fast favorite, with a strong debut EP and now this full-length that perfectly walks the tightrope of melodically pleasant and snotty punk. From track to track, CLASS manages to reference the gold standards of the late ’70s (even going so far as to brilliantly steal from “Guns of Brixton” in broad daylight on the track “Incomplete Extraction”). There’s more going on here than hero worship, though, and this band pulls out new tricks and layers of instrumentation that beef up their lush, driving sound at every turn. The songs are so strong, and the ear for detail just sends them home with a charge. I hope 2023 is another prolific year from this keen quartet, because I’m dying to hear more.

CML The Dirty Tape cassette

I first heard this on the iconic No Deal channel, and wasn’t interested from the first song. After a couple of listens, however, I’ve definitely changed my mind. If you like the classic fast and nasty style in the vein of the Texas I Hate, I Skate label that featured bands such as GLAASSSS, ARMY, and others, along with general noisy HC punk bands such as Q, LUMPY AND THE DUMPERS, and generally everything in the Lumpy Records discography, then this is undoubtedly a tape for you. This is just snotty, childish hardcore punk that, while it’s been done many times before, never seems to get old.

Compassion Pacing Animal LP

First release in three years from Brooklyn’s COMPASSION. Blisteringly fast grind tracks—blink and you’ll miss them, which is arguably the best kind of grindcore in existence. Everything is super tight and heavy. Drums are so fast and on point that I need to see it to believe it. Vocals are intense and nuanced, switching between guttural growls and banshee-like screams. Guitars cut through everything else like a knife, crisp and menacing. Very reminiscent of IRON LUNG and early WEEKEND NACHOS. Press release mentions that this band is a duo, but this recording is layered with two guitars and a bass. Would love to see how they pull this off live. Well worth a digital spin.

Critical Issues Critical Issues CD

If you like the vicious hardcore stomps that seem to dominate the DIY underworld in the 2020s, but you miss the raging crust fury of the 2000s and the unhinged fastcore of yore, then I’d like to introduce you to CRITICAL ISSUES. From the “bleaaaaaauuuurrrch” that kicks the opening track “Plague Years” into gear, you can just feel that this is some special shit. Ever wondered what would happen if GAG took a time machine and collaborated with wild ’00s fastcore à la MORTAL COMBAT and raw D-beat like PEACE OR ANNIHILATION…? I’d like to introduce you to CRITICAL ISSUES. Best surprise of the month, and I can’t wait to hear more!

Double Me / VIOLENCIA split EP

Heavy split between Padua, Italy’s DOUBLE ME and Tijuana, Mexico’s VIOLENCIA. DOUBLE ME gives us five powerviolence slammers in about two minutes. Blastbeats dominate the mix, but there is interesting guitar work and call-and-response caveman vocals à la SPAZZ. This side could have been mixed better. I like the songs, but they sound trebly and lack low-end heaviness, through no fault of the band. Meanwhile, VIOLENCIA shreds with a mix of powerviolence, hardcore, metal chugging, and doomy interludes. Their four songs are heavy and distinctively varied. “Frenesi” opens their side with ripping powerviolence, featuring super-pissed co-ed vocals like the best parts of DESPISE YOU. “Requiem Por Mi Existencia” is straightforward D-beat hardcore done extremely well, and just to round out the genre explorations, the side ends with an instrumental doom metal song. All heavy, all memorable, VIOLENCIA is a band to watch.

Ford’s Fuzz Inferno Death to the Fuzz Family EP

Hans F. Ford and Patrick Delabie have been kicking around the Dutch punk scene for decades. Ford played guitar in WASTE, whose 1982 EP History Repeats is an undeniably killer record—due in no small part to the thick fuzztone that envelops the tunes. Forty-one years later, that same velcro buzz is blasting forth from FORD’S FUZZ INFERNO. Despite playing as a two-piece, FORD’S FUZZ INFERNO has a very full, layered sound with multiple tracks of harmonizing vocals and guitars. The name may lead you to believe that you’re in for some lo-fi garage punk revival, but that is not the case. On the contrary, the production value is rather slick. Stylistically, this bears far more resemblance to BETTY FORD CLINIC, Ford and Delabie’s eclectic ’90s endeavor. In fact, for as much as it is heralded as the quintessential element of the band, the fuzz often feels at odds with both the production and the songs themselves. Though clearly crafted by a deft hand, I have to wonder if a cut like “My Reality” would be more impactful if the instrumentation was more discernible. A heretical thought if there ever were one! Death to the Fuzz Family reminds me of a less sophisticated MARTHA’S VINEYARD FERRIES. I don’t mean that as a slight; sophistication is for the birds. My problem is that I’m still trying to determine exactly who FORD’S FUZZ INFERNO is for.  

Garage Psychiatrique Suburbain Demos 1981–1982 LP

I gotta admit that my knowledge of first-wave Euro-punk is pretty limited. I know big acts like METAL URBAIN, or KBD-mainstays like the KIDS, HUBBLE BUBBLE, PACK, etc. And I’ll pick up the odd compilation of, say, Dutch punk or French fake punk when they come out, but I’ve never really gone deeper than that. So, it’s no surprise that I’d never heard of this act, who formed in the suburbs of Paris back in 1977 and played together until the late ’80s. But I’d be shocked if I was alone, at least among our (non-Francophile) American readers. Discogs prices on their first few Underdog records—the release that the final versions of these demos would end up on—suggest that they were pressed in pretty big quantities, which, along with the existence of this compilation, seems to suggest that these guys were hardly obscure, at least in France. But I’m not seeing much evidence that these really made it over to the US. It’s a little strange to get your first taste of an act via a demo compilation, but I still got a sense of what the band was about and I actually preferred the rougher demo cuts to the slicker versions that ended up on their records. The ten tracks on here are a mix of ’77 punk and poppy glam, bordering on bubblegum punk—I’d peg their sound somewhere among the CLASH, NEW YORK DOLLS, and PLASTIC BERTRAND. I prefer the poppier tracks—they’re definitely more memorable. “Quan Revient L’été” is a legit hit, and  I think RANCID stole their slow-jam schtick from “Peut-être à Jamais.” Also, it seems their guitarist/vocalist Tom Darnal led a pretty interesting life. After this band, he joined MANO NEGRA (an act that was pretty big in Europe), then moved to the US to become a tattoo artist but also spent a bunch of time in Cuba, which led to him forming a salsa drum and bass band. Wild! Anyway, this is worth a listen!

The Goons DCxPC Live Presents, Vol. 5: Live at the Black Cat LP

This label has been putting out quite a few live releases in the style and look of the old V.M.Live Presents records, and the GOONS might be the best one yet. I wasn’t super familiar with this band, but a good friend and native New Yorker informed me that they were an East Coast institution and a band that punks from all ages and scenes saw live and all liked (at least a little). Me, being an ignorant ex-Californian, was left clueless but curious. The songs are fast and beer-heavy, and you can hear them level this 2001 crowd with some Oi!/UK82 working-class-inspired hardcore, sorta like the WRETCHED ONES, 86 MENTALITY, or SUBMACHINE with a little mid-tempo POISON IDEA. The songs are catchy as hell, especially “I’m Alright,” “Hey You,” and “Every Day.” Snappy between-song banter completes the at-home live listening experience without the sticky boots and coughing up cigarette smoke. Real nice.

Hot Chicks Legalize It cassette

If the band name and tape title didn’t already set low expectations, the détourned RAMONES cover art and cassette shell decorated with pot leaves almost certainly would, but thankfully, HOT CHICKS aren’t Burger-eating party-bro goofballs, but rather some Leipzig movers and shakers from bands like LASSIE and EX-WHITE having fun with a femme-forward, synth-caked side project. Lise Sutter of MARAUDEUR, COUTEAU LATEX, etc. recorded and mixed this (and might even be in the band, it’s hard to tell who exactly those fake RAMONES are), and even without that connection, HOT CHICKS’ twitchy nuevo-wave art-garage immediately hit me as an even less self-serious twin to Sutter’s group the STACHES—blasé lead vocals with animated girl-gang backing chants, econo surf-trash guitar, squiggly sci-fi synth, metronomic drums. I’m partial to the robotically detached “Misfortune Day,” with shades of early DEVO without cracking any eggs, and the naggingly insistent “Fox,” which flips from extremely MARAUDEUR-esque punctuated, post-punky verses to tambourine-rattling sass in its choruses, but the whole thing is worth a blaze.

Iron Chic / Ways Away split 7″

It’s been a while since there’s been a new IRON CHIC track and this one does not disappoint. It’s a mid-tempo melodic masterpiece and everything one would expect from these Long Island punkers. WAYS AWAY offers up a track that is a great companion to the track on the other side. Melodic, bouncy, catchy. Good split all around. My only gripe would be that it’s a split single. Personally, I would have liked to have heard one more song from each band.

 

Kritická Situace St​á​le Na Út​ě​ku LP

A key piece of Prague’s punk history, filled with melancholy and angst, screaming for freedom and against mandatory military service and state oppression. This sixteen-track LP includes KRITICKÁ SITUACE’s second demo, originally released in 1989, and represents a great musical archeology effort to bring back a classic cult Czech band by mastering and releasing such an album. Raw punk and some primitive D-beat and crust, and even some proto-hardcore nods (which Czechs like to call “motörpunk”), delivering an example of primitive classic Eastern European sounds. Low quality on the instruments and recording gear, but that doesn’t really matter here. Time-resistant material filled with diminutive distorted guitars, ranting drums, and some good anti-war riffing with nods to militia-related cadences, but taking them as a method of resistance to establish their own war. This second demo from KRITICKÁ SITUACE offers some context regarding the almost-achieved early ’90s abolition of compulsory military service. “Still on the run from the limitations of our own fellow citizens. Still on the run from the madness of war.” Anti-militarism, pacifism, criticism of one’s own ranks. Pure raw punk energy catalyzed in vagueness, inexperience, limited skills, and greatly limited options for own equipment. Hate militarism? This might be an inspiring album for a revolt.

Martha Please Don’t Take Me Back LP

Melodic, catchy, and fun. There’s something familiar and warm about this album, like an old friend. I’ve enjoyed their past releases, but for whatever reason this one really strikes a chord with me. If you’re already a fan then you won’t be disappointed, and if you’re new to this UK band, you’re in for a treat if you enjoy well-crafted, toe-tappin’ indie/punk songs.

Mick’s Jaguar Salvation LP

MICK’S JAGUAR so generously bestows upon us the sound of the aged and imposing hipster. This group could easily be your weird uncle’s bar band with the local guitar hero. The album’s cover art of two horses mid-mount could only be their homage to the cover of BLOODHOUND GANG’s The Bad Touch single. From the start, Salvation kicks it into neutral and ghost-rides ten tracks downhill. This is pretty bad. The album is chock full of glammy and hackneyed sleaze paired with flashy guitar solos which don’t go anywhere. If you can imagine El Duce singing for a HANOI ROCKS cover band while listening to this body of work, the humor of that image will get you through the slog.

Mononegatives Kill Mono flexi 7”

Here’s a cool one from MONONEGATIVES out of London (not that London, the Canadian one). “Kill Mono” sort of reminds me of John Dwyer from OSEES playing songs by SUICIDE. It has a repetitive nature often found in this style, but with some great hooks thrown in to keep you interested. Lots of style, lots of swagger, I dig it.

Nightfeeder Cut All of Your Face Off LP

It took me a while to sit down with this one and write about it, yet I listened to it most of last year. It is one of the best records of 2022. NIGHTFEEDER was introduced to me in demo form by a friend and I was blown away. Then came an excellent EP, and this debut LP is the pinnacle of their sound. Song subjects cover such punk life issues as psychological torment, the existential, and being irreverently maligned by the system. What NIGHTFEEDER does best is rip with the feeling of blood, sweat, anguish, and angst. I’m not sure it’s really a formal term, but this is American crust as a style of hardcore punk that was sincerely invented by the members of this band (DEATHRAID, CONSUME, SHITLIST, STATE OF FEAR, DISRUPT…) and the regions where they started playing punk. NIGHTFEEDER plays with US thrash and hardcore influences and European/Scandi-crust dynamics, while delivering a classic hard rock’n’roll sound when they feel like it, because they fuckin’ feel like it. That is the attitude of this band and record in a nutshell. An amalgamation of MOTÖRHEAD, POISON IDEA, CRUCIFIX, INEPSY, DISFEAR, and DISCARD comes to mind. I’m even finding some RUDIMENTARY PENI chords here. Cut All of Your Face Off is a must if you’re looking for a gut-punch that is not any form of DIY trend and is like the quintessential hardcore punk and crust records from the last several decades. If you haven’t heard it in person, you’ll put the needle down on Side One and go “holy shit…”—that’s pretty much the reaction I get from others every time. And on Side Two, they turn the burners up all the way. The drumming on “Amoral Minority”…ugh. The LP is dismal, charred punk rock goodness (grief) from start to finish.

Prisonner du Temps Comme un Lion en Cage LP

There’s a hard edge here, to be sure…but this is a hard world. But when frustration and anger are born from a desire for something better, it all presents as something more than fury, and you can feel that in PRISONNER DU TEMPS’ debut full-length; it hits hard and holds you close from start to finish. The record feels like the kind of thing that bands like SYNDROME 81 are trying to do—dark and brooding hardcore punk with street punk hooks that never sound dated or trite. This is to 2023 what NO HOPE FOR THE KIDS and CRIMINAL DAMAGE were to the mid-2000s: classic, timeless, and absolutely stellar.

Rottweiler Nie Ma Spokoju LP

This second tape from ROTTWEILER originally came out in 1997, by which point this Polish band was a well-honed unit. Bringing mischievous and menacing hardcore with a skate punk lean, these tunes are fast and sharp with tight, rapid-fire drum precision, metal-edged guitars, and the type of pronounced bass lines that were so popular in that era. And they just keep coming for 48 minutes and change, so if you’re into this, there’s lots to chew on.

Sentido Común 1983–85 LP

This is perhaps one of the more interesting releases I’ve come by in a long time. SENTIDO COMÚN was an anarcho-punk band from Barcelona who played a brand of music that is completely unique. Imagine (if you even can) HONEY BANE growing up listening to Spanish radio, and you’ll be halfway to what SENTIDO COMÚN sounds like. They retain the typical anarcho-punk formula, but there are also glimpses of traditional Spanish music through the wall of sound. Occasionally, there is an almost flamenco quality to the music, without actually being anything like flamenco. The vocalization on this LP is also very interesting, ranging from cool singing to animalistic squawks.

Shaved Ape Shaved Ape demo cassette

If it’s got Will Killingsworth’s name on it, you can presume it’ll be a good release. Seriously, you can put your money on it. This solo project of Vince Klopfenstein, the legend behind several Philly and Pittsburgh bands such as the CRACKS and more recently LOOSE NUKES and WHITE STAINS (the latter being absolutely fucking incredible), has made a truly extraordinary demo. It’s fast raw punk in the vein of YDI, but reminds me a lot of Texas bands from the past decade, but also more current ones such as STUNTED YOUTH, SAVE OUR CHILDREN, and READY ARMED SYSTEM, with incoherent, lo-fi, snotty screaming alongside mean, stellar guitar playing. Great job Vince, I hope the band ends up playing some out-of-state shows.

Sklitakling Vi Har Hørt Det Før (del 2) 7″

It looks like a bleak hardcore record…but inside that white-on-black cover are two doses of gloriously addictive Norwegian garage punk. “Byfjord” feels ripped out of 1983—a mid-paced lumbering track with verses that build to an inevitable chorus and a guitar that seemingly exists to punctuate the vocal spurts. It’s a great track even though (or especially because) it leaves you hanging…and then the flip. “Staten” is a timeless track, like GENERACIÓN SUICIDA taking a time machine to 2003 København. Group vocals, infectious bass lines, and a constantly jangling guitar that seems to drag the drums onto the dancefloor. This is everything punk is meant to be.

Society’s Ills Lore CD

I had presumed this quartet is from Montreal, given that several of their songs are sung in French, but I could be wrong. Regardless, they have that fairly speedy melodic hardcore sound/style nailed down real tight. Anthemic, with plenty of layered vocals that would make BAD RELIGION nod appreciatively, and enough metallic guitar to give STRUNG OUT a run for their money. All with a sparkling, very 21st century production.

Teen Cobra Live at Funtastic Dracula Carnival 2021 cassette

Bad sound quality can hurt a recording, but here it is truly a member of the band. The guitars are playing straight out of the LEUSEMIA and RAMONES playbooks, and the drums are a spartan but joyful bass-and-snare stomp. Maybe there’s a tambourine? Or is that feedback? No new tricks here, but that spareness is engaging. It could also be that the songs are satisfyingly catchy and snotty. This is not as easy to pull off as one might believe. “Any fool can make something complicated, but it takes genius to keep it simple.”

Weaponized Flesh Hurtful cassette

Five tracks of throwback-style speed metal from Athens, Georgia. WEAPONIZED FLESH does an excellent job of keeping your attention with a mixture of classic-sounding speed/thrash metal riffs, raging heavy metal guitar solos, and power metal harmonized leads. Throw in that hard-to-define punk edge that a band like this brings to the table, and it all works pretty well.

Z-Pak Z-Pak demo cassette

This demo is one distressing crash after another distressing crash. The sound is damp and a little off-time, with waves of reverb and squealing vocals that bring a lot of early LUMPY AND THE DUMPERS to mind right from the start. The band is from Philly, and this appears to be the first cassette out for them. I will for sure make time for this band with what comes next. Get into it.

V/A Typical Girls, Vol. 6 LP

Another great collection of femme-fronted bands “inspired by the pioneering women of the first-wave punk era and beyond,” as Emotional Response writes. Without pigeonholing themselves to any specific subgenre, a really diverse range is on display here. To name just a few: the LINDA LINDAS start off with super catchy ’60s girl group crunch, FAKE FRUIT contributes “No Mutuals” off their popular 2021 self-titled album, SWEEPING PROMISES provide angular and driving jabs of bass and guitar, WET SPECIMEN warbles through a slow progression of dark and reverent melodies (and is my favorite track of the album), LANDE HEKT jangles amongst a cherry-sweet indie collage, PROVOKE lets you know they’re going to get heavy with a feedbacked, slow-chug guitar intro (and it’s a truly a headbanger), SQUID INK gets snotty in the garage, and OPTIC SINK rounds it out with a synth punk, spaced-out closer. If you go to stream this on Spotify, FAKE FRUIT and SWEEPING PROMISES are not on the album, even though they both exist elsewhere on the platform. I don’t know why, but neither are to be missed, so just buy the record! Dive in, and I’m sure you’ll find something new to enjoy.

The Annihilated Submission to Annihilation LP

2022 was certainly a memorable year for punk albums, with a number of releases I would consider to be new instant classics. Coming in at the final hour, the ANNIHILATED unleashed Submission to Annihilation, one of the year’s latest and greatest. Full-throated and raw, the ANNIHILATED play a similar strain of D-beat hardcore to BOOTLICKER, with a vocal delivery that has been correctly compared to Damaged-era Rollins. Lyrically, topics cover class warfare (“Divide and Conquer,” “Bootstraps”), widespread apathy (“Normality”), and the hell of substance abuse (“Vice Grip”), themes that are all uniquely modern and unfortunately timeless. Add to that the artwork from drummer Nicky Rat and mixing by Jonah Falco (whose seal of approval is always a sign of quality) and that it’s self-released(!), and it simply cannot be understated: the ANNIHILATED have ticked every box and delivered their own instant classic.

B.E.T.O.E. Civilización flexi EP

Crashing cymbals, blown-out vocals, shredded guitar, rumbling bass, punk crudo at its best! B.E.T.O.E. seemingly wishes sonic demolition upon all of the broken systems that mire our world. The production of this flexi yields some of the most listenable B.E.T.O.E. material for me. A slightly cleaner sound, not quite spotless, approaching a high-end studio sound but still retaining enough noise to sound like it came from the sewers of Barcelona. This is still some noisy, smash the system/smash everything rawness. This three-song disc clocks in well below six minutes, with each track offering intricate musicianship and composition in a miniscule amount of time.

Bloodstained Downfall Magnificant LP

Over-the-top apocalypse metalcore from Poland, hitting so hard from the opening bell that it might take a few tracks to catch your breath. Metallic ’90s hardcore taken to absolute extremes—BLOODSTAINED delivers with a ferocity that will win over even the most negative with their unhinged sonic negativity. 

Conservative Military Image Skinhead cassette

A couple of months ago, I began to notice a buff dude popping up in pictures with some of my favorite bands like the CHISEL and VIOLENT WAY along with the letters “CMI,” and I couldn’t help but wonder “who is this guy, and what the fuck is ‘CMI’?” Well, it didn’t take long for me to find out. “CMI” is CONSERVATIVE MILITARY IMAGE, a Chicago-based band making waves with their one-two punch of EPs, Summer Skinhead and this, their debut Skinhead. Playing a catchy mix of Oi!, hardcore, and street punk, CONSERVATIVE MILITARY IMAGE has cited inspiration from bands as diverse as WARZONE, ROSE TATTOO, and NEW YORK HOUNDS. Lead singer and lyricist Adam is the glue holding this crew together, and while I love his classic tough-guy punk sneer (almost going into Stiv Bators/DEAD BOYS territory at times), the real gold is his lyrics. Clever and direct, proud and loud, Adam is extremely economical with his writing yet leaves plenty to unpack. “Generation Kill” is a great example; a sub-two-minute stomper that tells you everything you need to know about this band’s mentality and manages to slip in an easter egg of a lyric from Boston’s the TROUBLE. It’s a tasteful homage and something CONSERVATIVE MILITARY IMAGE is so good at: respectfully mining inspiration and making something fresh of their own. I’m fortunate enough to be a Chicago native and look forward to catching these guys this year. Fuckin’ Oi! is right!

Cromosoma Fuera Plutón / Medicina Fantástica 7″

Two short synth punk jammers from this Spanish band. Veering away from the eggy DEVO-worship that is so common with synth projects, CROMOSOMA reaches back a little further for influences, sounding like a blend of LOS MICROWAVES and OG Spanish synth punks AVIADOR DRO. The two tracks here have clean keyboard lines and crisp drum machine beats with group vocals on top. “Medicina Fantástica” drips with icy new wave atmosphere, all driving bass pulse and echoes. Worth checking out.

The Dirts II cassette

Second album outta the Swedish band the DIRTS. From the start, this is a fuzzy and psychedelic reverb-riddled exercise in Garage 101. Songs move in and out of each other without much distinction, while carrying a looming and grinding bass guitar pounding that  keeps the whole ship afloat. Nothing great, but nothing to complain about either—you have everything packaged and delivered in the most comprehensive and indulgent way. I would listen to it all again if it came my way. Could the estate of JAY REATARD please get some royalties for this?

Drug City Drug City demo cassette

After much consideration, I have deduced that DRUG CITY is from Bruchsal in Germany, a middle-sized town not far at all from French Alsace. They have a song poetically entitled “South West Fuck You,’’ and since Bruchdal is located in the country’s southwestern part and that Iniquity Records is based there, my ever-insightful, perceptive mind was quick to guess (unless they are actually from Tucson?). I have to admit I had never heard of neither place nor band before, and this first demo tape is a rough one indeed. I have never been one to back down before barely audible distorted raw hardcore punk and even regularly play some during family dinners, but in this case I am at a loss as to what they are actually trying to do here. There is certainly a D-beat raw punk influence—they do cover DISCLOSE—and a couple of mid-paced songs, but the production is so rough that it pretty much falls flat, the songs lose the necessary energy, and the vocals have that evil hellish demented tone that would be more fitting to a blackened crust template. This very limited edition (ten copies!) is clearly a first attempt, but it is just very hard to listen to. I do like the lyrics however, especially to “Destroy All Art,’’ with its direct, political, and quite clever words. I just wish DRUG CITY would have been a bit less literal with the topic.

Egrogsid Sawn Off Throat Gun 2xCD

Otherwise known as DISGORGE backward, here EGROGSID offers 122 tracks of gruesome mince-noise and primitive grind. I let this compilation play before I even started working on the review. There is plenty of time to catch up. These are true grind songs, however—thirty seconds to almost two minutes at times. This is very much in the style of loose, chaotic, death-beaten cacophonous droning grind. Sick guitar tones and killer splattering drumming. Being from Melbourne, I am sure they played with neighbors BLOOD DUSTER in the later part of their tenure. Bizarre (and humorous) occult samples are throughout with low vocals, high vocals, and maniacal vocals all over the place. This is the kind of thing I’d put on sitting in some living room with the worst 40 ever bottled in my lap. That is to say, it brings back fond memories. Included are NAPALM DEATH, EXTREME NOISE TERROR, UNSEEN TERROR, and EXTRA HOT SAUCE covers. This is entirely that SORE THROAT/GORE BEYOND NECROPSY/WARSORE/ACCION MUTANTE/EXCRUCIATING TERROR sound. You could put this on for an afternoon (or at 2:00 am with both your friends like I would) and just zone out and enjoy it. I’ve pretty much completed my task here and I’m on track seventeen.

Flower City Maggots Consume EP

Ripper of an EP here from FLOWER CITY out of Austin, Texas. These six songs recall the darker side of classic old-school SoCal like early TSOL and DI. Embellishing their menacing riffage with a drummer who plays like MINOR THREAT’s Jeff Nelson and an echoed, spectral vocalist who wails over each song like a different section of a carnival spook house, this band has an awesome, memorable sound that I’m hoping to hear more of. One of the coolest new 7”s of the last while, for sure.

The Gaggers Shockwave / Stabbed in the Back… Too Many Times 7″

While this isn’t new music, these two tracks, which were recorded in 2016, are previously unreleased. Whenever I hear songs that were recorded years ago but are just being released now, I’m a little underwhelmed. The same is true here. I generally like the GAGGERS’ stuff. It’s mid-tempo, classic late ’70s punk.  It’s raw. It’s in-your-face punk. But if the songs weren’t worthy of release in 2016, what makes them worthy of release now? The lack of any new music? I remain skeptical.

Hævner Kaldet Fra Tomrummet LP

This is the type of music I’ve been seeking for years: a blend of raw punk and post-punk that is dark and hardcore. Noisy flanged guitars, powerful vocal delivery, driving bass lines that keep going, and smashing drums, all combining to form a threatening and ominous sonic environment. I mentioned this release to a trusted friend in Berlin who immediately said “HÆVNER is awesome live.” Being a reliable friend, I fucking believe it. I can only imagine how this must translate to a concert setting. While being raw, it’s also very danceable with big rhythm energy. I’ll definitely be dancing along for a while.

Imperial Leather Heavy Breathing EP

The first twenty seconds of this EP—this Melbourne act’s second following their 2020 self-released debut—sets you up for quite a rug pull. You’re presented with a minimal drums, bass, and keys arrangement accompanied by icy cool start/stop talk-sung vocals, and just as you’re settling in for maybe a “Chaise Longue”-type number—yank!—the song shifts into a higher gear and the muscle car on the record’s cover starts to make sense; you’re actually on your way to party rock city! Some Nuggets-esque guitars kick in, the keyboard that had up until this point merely been pecked at morphs into a sci-fi frat rock organ, and the vocalist slides into a Kathleen Hanna/Beth Ditto full-throated vibrato. It’s like the mashup of “Planet Claire” and “96 Tears” you never knew you wanted until now. “Lewis Lee” and “Smile Now, Cry Later” are still bouncy organ-driven numbers, but they’re closer to post-punk or new wave—the former reminds me a lot of fellow Melbournians TERRY, and the later features guitar melodies that are approaching CURE-like. But the EP saves the best for last—”Creep Stain” manages to split the difference between the rockin’ opener and the cooler tracks that follow, and the end result just sounds like really good punk with an excellent shout-along chorus. Real cool record!

Kometa Our Open Bodies Will Respond LP

This is melody-heavy indie rock with a somber touch. There’s a lot of harmony, a little reverb, and a bunch of light guitars played over PIXIES-esque bass lines. Several songs move at a dreamy pace as those faint guitar notes linger on for seconds. At one point, they stretch into a prolonged drone. It’s a nice-looking record with a clean, professional sound.

Kürøishi Käärme Sisälläsi, Myrkyttää Maailmahi LP

No need to look past the cover on this one—fans of Burning Spirits, fist-pumping modern D-beat hardcore, and WORLD BURNS TO DEATH might have a new favorite with the third full-length from Finland’s KÜRØISHI. Thundering drums, searing vocals, and guitars that trade epic leads and wildly catchy riffs. The late ’00s were dominated by bands trying to sound this good, and now here comes the early ’20s and KÜRØISHI is here to smoke them all. “Givers Turn Into Takers” is the notable curveball, and should be a classic for years to come. Euro press by Fight, CD in Japan by Break The Records, and the North American platter from SPHC.