IS THE WORLD OVER YET? REVIEWS FOR JUNE

So, sad to say we're all still living on Planet Shitball and I'm feeling just as much anxiety as the next person.  And if I may give myself an ever-so-slight pat on the back I feel as if I'm doing my civic duty by wearing a mask any time I go to a business or other indoors place that's not my own home, giving to a few charities, voting in my primaries, and demonstrating with the masses (wearing a mask, of course) in order to stand up for my fellow citizens against the nonsense of our corrupt system.  I realize that doesn't even begin to put the tiniest dent in all the bad things happening day in, day out.  But it's better than doing nothing at all.  And all that being said, it's still important to take a little time out for oneself and for me it's discovering new music and amplifying it so others can check it out for themselves.  A lot of us are struggling, many of us are exhausted, and despite our best efforts we all need a little break now and then.  So feel free to check out some of this stuff because this month I've come across some really excellent records that have definitely helped me get out of my own head for a bit.

-(16)-, “Dream Squasher”

For a band that has been around nearly 30 years with a cast of members rotating in and out the length of your arm -(16)- has certainly dedicated themselves to a particular sound.  It’s certainly grown more polished over the years as they have fine tuned their particular strain of cannabis-infused hardcore sludge, but I’m just surprised they sound as good as they do after multiple member changes, numerous full lengths and about a million splits and EPs.  For the uninitiated, in their most accessible moments -(16)-  may bring to mind Crowbar or Down.  And when they don’t really give a rat’s ass about appealing to your catchy sensibilities they are a down-tuned sludgy beast clobbering you over the noggin with riff after riff before shifting gears and drag-racing over your face.  I’m not entirely sure what to make of the content of the songs, but when you got a track called “Me and the Dog Die Together”- literally making a suicide pact with your dog- I’m inclined to believe the lyrical remainder of this album is equally as bleak and miserable as the music itself.  Intended exclusively for listening to when you develop a bad drug habit and are hanging out under a rain cloud that won’t stop following you.  (Relapse)

CORIKY, s/t

“All the pennies hammered into swords/ And the penniless that they’re pointed towards”.  So goes one of the best couplets on the debut album from the oddly-named Coriky.  But it’s a decent place to begin within the song “Last Thing”, which has a strong air of folksy protest leanings and I suppose that may be a direction the band is interested in.  While the news this group even existed led to a myriad of imaginative possibilities before they even debuted a lick of music (“Will it be like The Evens, but more electrified?  Or will it sound like Fugazi acoustic?”) I would have to say the resulting album sounds naturally how you might imagine the pairing of these three personalities sounds if you are familiar with their music from the last 15-20 years.  Yes, there are parts that remind me of later-era Fugazi material- delicate yet intense, clever and jagged (“Too Many Husbands” has this simple staccato riff going throughout the song that I associate with a number of my favorite Ian MacKaye guitar-playing moments).  There are certainly more than a few parts that bring to mind The Evens (Amy Farina’s consistently inventive drumming, cooing and terse vocals), and Joe Lallys monumentally dexterous yet deceptively economical bass playing that recalls work from his solo records.  All three parts work well together and obviously having those working relationships together in various bands over the last couple decades has something to do with it.  Still, there’s an element to Coriky that seems new-ish.  I think people who were really hoping for something more upbeat, or closer to Fugazi, than The Evens will probably be let down.  I’m personally invested/interested enough in the musical adventures of all the players involved to be overall pleased with what they have created here.  I think there’s a couple slower, meandering songs that don’t quite land, but there’s also a number of songs that may not have registered immediately that I later found myself humming after only a couple listens.  So that ought to say something about them being able to create earworms.  And there’s a few other songs that are immediately pleasing which, for me, was pay off enough to consider this an album worth getting.  (Dischord)

DUMMY, s/t EP

I may be a little off-base when describing the debut from Dummy because I don’t often find myself listening to music of this sort, although I do admit I find it enjoyable.  In my defense though, Dummy do offer up a mixed bag here as a few songs run through what appears to be a decided approach while one track is totally acoustic, and another is an extended electronic foray with blips, chirps, and chimes as some sort of meditative trance.  On the songs where they do find themselves falling into a groove Dummy set off on a trip that is part psych-bliss, part dreamy shoegaze, as dissonant Sonic Youth-inspired passages collide with Stereolab’s experimental weirdo pop.  It’s a nice change of pace from what I typically roll with and despite not yet locking down their sound it makes for a decent introduction to this new band.  (Pop Wig)

HEADS. “Push”

It has nothing to do with how this record actually sounds but I want to make a point to state that I really like the way this record looks.  It’s very minimalist in a unique way in that everything is right on the front- big, bold title, all the lyrics and information on the front cover while the rest is incredibly simplistic.  But that’s sort of the modus operandi for international noise rock group Heads.  They may seem like there’s a lot going on between effects, feedback, and various layers.  But at it’s base the band write simple, repetitive, and trance-like screeds that are as suave as they are surreptitiously vicious. The record bookends with a menacing machine-like drone with spoken word warnings while all the music between falls somewhere into early Young Widows worship and upbeat Euro rock akin to Lack if they’d gone post-punk.  Heads are several records deep into their career, and this one seems the most focused yet.  (Glitterhouse)

ILS, “Curse”

There’s a sense of instant gratification about listening to the debut full length from Ils.  Within the first minute of opening track “Bad Parts” you know exactly what you’re getting in the 10 songs on this record.  Their sound is informed as much by 90’s chain-wallet core (without resorting to the parts that didn’t age well) as it is by the precisely fine-tuned killing music of the last several Unsane records.  Everything is dialed in exactly as it is supposed to sound, each song tends to clock in around a lean 3 minutes average, and there’s a rhythm here so workmanlike it ought to apply for a union card.  The X factor here belongs to vocalist Tom Glose (ex- Black Elk) whose range goes from gloomy howls, rambled diatribes, and throat-shredding shrieks all within the space of each song.  It lends a dose of variety to enjoyable noise rock gut-busters that may otherwise suffer a slight case of repetitiveness were it being heralded by a singer with a singular delivery.  If you like heavy-handed, meat-y noise rock this is for you.  The only downside is all five of the songs from their demo have been re-recorded, so you’re really only getting 5 brand new songs.  But if you haven’t heard the demo then you’re getting 10 new songs if you want to go with a glass half-full approach!  (self-released)

LIGHTHEADS, “Cold Sheets”/”This Is Fine”

I’d seen this band here in town a couple times and have enjoyed their earnest, scrappy, and catchy brand of punk rock in cruddy dives.  But for the most part they were an easily-digestible opener for whatever band I was really there to see.  I feel like that is about to change with these two new songs that sound galaxies apart from what they had done up to this point (a demo and a split 7” to be exact).  There is so much more drive, focus, and an incredible-sounding production to these two gigantic anthems.  The bass is dialed into this gruff dirge worthy of the dirtiest of post-hardcore bands while the guitars shimmer and provide texture to the righteous Fugazi-esque vocals.  They still retain that scruffy punk side, but have given it purpose with developed songwriting and these massive choruses that make you want to go out and accomplish something meaningful, ya know?  Go listen to this and then run a marathon, or convince the entire Portland police department to mace themselves in the face.  (self-released)

TRUTH CULT, “Off Fire”

On their debut full length the kids in Truth Cult already check off a number of positives for me.  For starters, they’re named after a Lungfish song (closing track, “Where You’re From Is There Death” could have been a B-side from “Talking Songs For Walking”).  The majority of their music has an exuberant, positive energy to it in the spirit of Revolution Summer DC meeting up with the loose and wild fury of Swiz.  Opening track “Chemical Trials” immediately grabs a hold of the listener and clobbers them with a quick punch heavily reminiscent of early Ink & Dagger (not DC-derived, but Swiz-influenced).  And near the record’s end they roll with some grooving post-hardcore thump on “Vacuum Of Faith”, with its repetitive slink and alternating serpentine vocals.  So there’s a bit of a mix that hits upon a lot of stuff that I really, highly value, and it all works into an excellent record from some very exciting newcomers.  Listening to this is not only super enjoyable, but I get that weird feeling that seems to arise when you’re old and it’s that sort of proud/hopeful energy like, ‘the kids are alright’.  Damn, I feel old, but also pumped about the future of punk if these people are a part of it. (Pop Wig)