Generally speaking, these days most of the stuff I end up reviewing are things I am personally interested in and seek out on my own, and then I feel compelled to write about it. But I still get solicitations here and there and do my best to write something up about the ones I find unique in one way or another. In the last month or so I've had more solicitations than usual and so there is a fairly eclectic array of stuff on this list this time around. Oh, and the past review is from one of my favorite, and oft-overlooked, DC bands as they had a short-lived tenure. But, ya know, big surprise that I write up something about a DC band right?
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A.M. NICE, s/t
My frame of reference for most things goes back at least 10
years so forgive me if what this sounds like to me has no bearing on you
whatsoever.
This sounds just like
early Chisel.
Ya know, the Ted Leo
band before he went solo.
It’s
like those demos, or maybe “Nothing New”-era where they were still kind of
rough around the edges before the total Jam worship set in with “8AM All Day”
and “Set You Free”?
No?
Nothing?
Well, screw you.
This sounds like early Chisel.
It’s fine with me.
Think
some rough n’ tumble jangly guitar and some nods towards mod bands in the
background.
It’s catchy, poppy,
and still playing it kind of loose.
(Phratry)
CHRON TURBINE, “II”
A second full length dose of noisy goodness spews forth from
this low-key band of weirdoes.
If
any diligent readers recall my last review of this band I described them as The
Cars as played by KARP, or something to that effect.
This new release is a little less overtly catchy, and goes
for uglier stabs at delivering earworms, though probably not
intentionally.
Things start off
with some strong Jesus Lizard-meets-Girls Vs Boys vibes before going into “Love
and Infection”, probably the most riffy, Sabbath-y, and lyrically funny song on
the whole thing.
The remainder of
the recording tends to be a bit more upbeat and frantic with the exception of
the drunken swagger of “Midnight Mayor” and the closing droney epic “Way
Out”.
This is good stuff, a bit
progressed from their last record but just as freaky.
It would be nice if they played out a bit, I bet they would
be fun live.
(Peterwalkee Records)
FAKING, “Goddamn Cowards”
I’m the last one to call out a band for paying respect to
another band in their sound.
I
like all sorts of bands that wholesale rip off their predecessors and peers.
But I really have to say, Faking play
Young Widows, “Settle Down City” a little too close to the nose (they even have
a very similar lights set-up live).
I mean, it sounds just like that record.
While it’s hardly a bad thing for a band to choose YW as an
influence it comes off as a little too obvious and that may put some people
off.
On the other hand, Faking do
have a good sense of groove and power to their songs.
Their lyrics read like short stories of people making bad
decisions, and they also somehow manage to turn a Gladys Knight and the Pips
cover (“If I Was Your Woman”) into their own song.
I’m not sure how they pulled it off, but it works.
It could be a lot worse ya know?
They could totally suck.
But they don’t and so that makes this alright.
(Reptilian Records)
MAPLE STAVE, “V”
This band has a pretty interesting set up by forgoing the
bass guitar and using a baritone guitar instead, which always sounds cool to
me.
It’s like having a second
guitarist and a bassist all in one instrument!
Hooray for efficiency!
Maple Stave border on the space between what could be
Dischord-influenced rock (Bluetip/Jawbox) and clattering noise rock.
It’s a little too clean for a noise
rock bit and a little less inventive than my Dischord heroes, but it gets the
job done nonetheless.
In fact, I’m
getting a strong Faraquet vibe from this, minus the algorithms needed to fully
execute what that band did so effortlessly.
(Phratry)
MELVINS, “Bases Loaded”
Here’s the idea- since the Melvins have had about 50
different bass players throughout their time as a band why not make a record
that puts the spotlight on the bass players, in which the band got several
different people (including drummer Dale Crover) to slap the 4-string over the
course of a dozen tracks.
Current
bassist Steve MacDonald (also of OFF!), former (slah-occasional) bassist Jared
Warren (of Big Business), Pinkus (usual guy, and former Butthole Surfers
member), Trevor Dunn (Mr. Bungle musical prodigy), and even Krist Novaselic
(from some band) all contribute tracks to this record.
As the Melvins have progressed their
sound has veered from less sludgy mountains of riffs to more just weird rock
(with some not-so-slight nods to Kiss and other arena legends) and to be
honest, it doesn’t really do it for me.
I appreciate that they have done this forever, still tour year-round,
still have creative juices to do whatever weird shit comes to mind for them,
and seem to be completely satisfied and stable with how it is done.
I respect the shit out of that.
And while the music is obviously
well-written it’s just not for me.
I think the last thing that really blew my hair back (as I now have
none) was “A Senile Animal” so maybe it’s just me being an ignoramus regarding
Melvins massive output.
(Ipecac)
NULL/ SELF DEFENSE FAMILY split 7”
Generally, SDF would be the lead name on a split simply
because of how prolific they are.
But I gotta give the nod to Null, a side project of Coliseum drummer
Carter Wilson (and others), for the stellar contribution here.
They go with a brooding True
Widow-esque slow burner with haunting vocals and spooky riffs and I’m all over
this like flies on that weird salad your aunt made for the family reunion BBQ.
I’d like to add, if you have not
checked out their LP “Sleepwalking Days” they released earlier this year I
highly recommend it as it is quickly becoming one of my favorite records to
come out in 2016.
OK, so the SDF
side is a meandering dream of a song with a single line repeated over and
over.
I’m into the idea of them
just doing whatever the fuck they please and not kowtowing to any sort of
pre-conceived notion of what they’re supposed to sound like.
But the most recent spate of material
they have released is a little too on the mellow side for my tastes and I kind
of prefer when they have a little more energy going with their music.
(Protagonist)
OLD LINES/ WILL POTTER, “To Build a Fire” split 7”
One is a Baltimore d-beat wrecking crew, the other is an
award-winning investigative journalist specializing in animal rights issues and
how government surveillance impedes upon others fighting for the voiceless (and
many other related issues).
The
idea is to combine both music from the band and have it segue into Potter’s
spoken sections on the topics listed previously.
On the b-side Potter opens things up with a very emotional
and personal piece before Old Lines breaks into a fiery ripper.
It is nothing short of visceral, between
Potter’s political/personal rhetoric (featuring some noisy sampling textures in
the background) bleeding into feedback and Old Lines then completely
annihilating the turntable with their super heavy, intense, and beyond pissed
brand of hardcore fire.
Highly
recommended for those needing a reminder that we are constantly being trampled
on by the powers that be and why sometimes you just need to set something on
fire to turn the tables just a little bit.
(Life Advice Records)
SOUND DISCARD, demo
Did this band design their demo to match their name?
I ask because this literally is sound
on a disc placed inside a card.
Ya
know, a sound disc card.
I got
jokes for days, I tell ya.
All
that aside, this new Syracuse-area band has picked on that shoegaze stuff that
has been all the rage with the kids these days.
I might discard (no pun intended) this as young kids riding
the coattails of the flavor of the month if these weren’t all seasoned
musicians who have been playing in a multitude of bands over the years.
So while their music may take hints from
bands like Nothing they certainly have a well-informed approach to it that is
ethereal, spacious, melodic, and still loud as all get out.
Not a bad start.
(self-released)
SPRAY PAINT, “Feel the Clamps”
Did six months go by already?
They must have because another Spray Paint LP has
arrived.
In what is approaching
some sort of record this Austin, TX band has released 4 full lengths in less
than three years, by my count.
These dudes obviously like to write and record.
And like their last release, “Dopers”
(or was it “Punters On the Barge”?) it shares a similar production quality and
song writing style.
I hate to say
it, but Spray Paint is getting a little predictable lately and while I still
enjoy what they do quite a bit I have to admit being partial to when they
sounded a little more gritty.
Yes,
the jittery fucked up guitar reverb is ever-present, as is the nasally vocals
going on about weirdoes and white trash.
While most of the songs move at a pretty good clip I think I like the
slow ones the best- “Shovelling” and “Heaps Of Ice” have an extra
creepy/dude-on-cheap-drugs-coming-down feel to them.
Best line on the record:
“Shut up/I’m drinking over here.”
(Goner)
Bonus Round:
REGULATOR WATTS, “The Aesthetics Of No Drag”
Rising from the ashes of Hoover this DC band excelled at
creating moody, feedback-driven songs driven by thoughtful and intricate bass
lines.
Alex Dunham, who provided
many of those guitar squalls and low, howled vocals in Hoover really
accentuates the mood in these songs.
The cover art by Jason Farrell, somewhat out of character from this
usual style, just drives it home with whatever the huge sleek machine engulfing
a bridge over a bay, as if that picture was the sound of the band.
Things start off with “Mercuchrome”, a
burst of feedback on top of a slick and repetitive bass riff that quickly jumps
into a lock step groove with those sharp, yet steady, guitar jabs somehow
making a melody over it all.
“20
th
Century Ltd.” follows a similar path, energetic and complex, but flowing
together in a weird and noisy caterwaul.
As the moaning of guitars open “Seedtick East” one is reminded of a
foggy bay in the dead of night as a ship sounds it’s foghorn to call out to
other lonely ships passing in the night.
The high point of the record comes next with “The Ballad Of St. Tinnitus”,
almost like welcoming the dawn and it’s huge swell of sustained guitar skree
and harrowing account of losing one’s parents to drug and alcohol abuse before
an epic finale and shouts of “The ring, rings/ Make the people sing”.
Things move into more melodic territory
on the B-side with the rather smooth and upbeat “Pemberton red” and
“Chechero”.
Bobby Sullivan from
Soul Side does guest vocals on “False Idols” and it’s heavily dub-influnced
sound.
The record closes with
“Witchduck”, a move back into noisy and somewhat chaotic territory.
There’s really no way to describe what
Regulator Watts did in their brief existence because there is really no one who
plays guitar quite the way Alex Dunham does.
But if you are familiar with the more haunting aspects of
Hoover (or any of the bands he’s done post- Regulator Watts) it will give a
hint.
As well as being backed by
an incredible rhythm section this is a true overlooked gem in the DC
canon.
I never got to see this
group, nor any other band these guys were associated with, and scant live video
exists of them either.
They only
released this full length, as well as a couple of EPs that were grouped
together on the “Mercury” CD.
This
record isn’t too hard to find though so I highly suggest doing a little digging
and hearing for yourself the very unique thing that they brought to the
table.
(Slowdime)
