Do people even go to school anymore? Is that still a thing? I'm out of the loop.
Either way, here's a bunch of fun indie stuff and some fahkin' hahdcoh!!!
Everything else is friggin' busy with pieces and parts of records moving here and there and trying to keep it all sorted. Got a bunch of traveling coming up over the next couple months too so who knows, maybe I'll show up in your area.
ANXIOUS WAVE, “Live From the Poison Factory”
On a lark I decided to give this a spin and was pleasantly
surprised at what was presented by this group of punks. Right away they kick in with some
noisy-fuzzy punk rock that showed off a fair deal of melody and deft bass work
that brought forth the hooks, some times giving off a SoCal approach, but far
less polished. What sets this
apart further is having a vocalist that sounds like Rollins doing a little less
constant self-reflection and trying his hand at just a bit more range to go with
the sandpaper-shredded throat.
Things are fairly aggressive for the first few tracks until it gets to
the slower heart-puncher/tearjerker “Regards” and then throws a few tracks that
dip into 80’s postpunk like “Carnivore” and “Void Boyz” before getting back
into ugly, aggressive territory on the last pair of songs. I’m with it. This band doesn’t necessarily fall into one particular
category, but rather expresses themselves in an original way through skate
rock, post-punk, noise rock, and doses of grimey hardcore and they make it work
well. (Nefarious Industries)
DEMONS, “Swallow” EP
While the band’s name may be lacking a bit in imagination
there are a whole bunch of good ideas packed into these four rippers that tear
right through you like a ghost pepper enema in about seven minutes. Following up on their recently released
LP I love the notion of this EP being so quick and yet full of energy that you
really just want more. Whether
it’s the absolute heaviest post-hardcore can get during the close of “Inauguration
Day” or the Botch-esque controlled chaos of “Public Art” and the second half of
“Nothing At the Bottom” Demons do a great job of mixing all that stuff with
fast, abrasive hardcore and churning those styles together like so many circle
pits in some decrepit living room where you know you’re never getting the
security deposit back because sooner or later the landlord will figure out
you’ve been hosting punk shows there for the last 5 months. (Knife Hits)
IRANIRAN, “Previously, On….”
With song titles like “Form Is Temporary, Shitiness Is
Eternal” and absolutely zero vocals you can already begin to assume what this
band might sound like. Yes, it’s
another group playing math-y instrumental music with goofy song titles. I’m not quite sure how that became a
thing, but it’s like the calling card of the most obvious serial killer in
history. Whatever the case, at
least IranIran (yup, one word) have the decency to give their clever math rock
some cajones by funneling it through chunky sludge rock akin to the likes of
Pelican, Torche, or Russian Circles, though I’ll admit it tended to meander off
into less tumultuous thundering riffs during the last couple tracks and sorta
lost my attention. I’ll also give
them this- the artwork on this phenomenal, whatever is going on here- a person
being ripped out of their skin by I’m not sure what, an old TV, or oven, or
dryer? Who knows. It looks cool, it (mostly) sounds cool
too. (self-released)
KISSED BY AN ANIMAL, “I Don’t Have To Explain Myself To You”
On their second LP the Brooklyn indie rockers in Kissed By
Animal return with a similar sound, with some tasteful updates, as well as
another eye-pleasing ultra-colorful gatefold cover that’s simply a delight to
look at. They’re still on that
jangly catchy power-pop tip with a big nod to Teenage Cool Kids (“Blue Skull”
especially before it does a kind of psychedelic fake out ending before coming
back to the main riff), but sometimes reminds me of more direct pop music like
the Rentals with simple verse-chorus- verse and occasional keyboards making for
some undeniably fun sounds. The
record closes out with a ballad that might be out of place with most other
bands of this style, but seems almost fitting for this group for reasons I
cannot explain. Maybe it’s because
throughout the record they work their pop hooks like earworms little by little
until you get to the title track (the last one) and they’re on the verge of
doo-wop mixed with the slow dance at the prom and by then you’re like ‘this
makes sense. I’m with it.’ Very clever Kissed By An Animal, very
clever indeed. (Handstand Records)
PERSONAL STYLE, “False Memories” and “On Fyre” 7”
This Buffalo group hits you with not one, but two, (semi) new 7”
records. And at a total of four
songs across them. Twenty years
ago I would have seen this as completely normal, as would any person who
enjoyed the 7” record format. Now,
as a person who presses records in the insane hellscape that is running a label
in the 2020’s, the notion of simply committing a couple songs to a 7” record
seems totally batshit crazy to me.
Not only does it take forever to press records, but the cost is
incredibly high, even for 7”s. So
when this group continually keeps tossing out various singles I have to wonder
just how deep their pockets are, or if the members are immortal and time is but
a blink of an eye to them. More
power to them if they can pull it off, but I’d think it would just be more
advantageous to save all those tunes up for a full length and get it all done
at once. But I digress, I ought to
talk about the music right? So
Personal Style has already released a few records and this continues their
tasteful post-punk/power pop rock groove.
I’m putting it together that there are clearly members of the now
defunct (yet attention-deserving) Mallwalkers in their ranks, but that’s really
not much of a detective-like deduction seeing as about half the population of Buffalo
comprised that very large group.
Either way, I can hear some of that Mallwalkers thing going on, though
Personal Style is more lean in their approach, taking cues from the likes of
X-Ray Spex, Buzzcocks, and The Jam but with a modern flair. Enjoyable no doubt.
(self-released)
SAWCHUCK, “Modern Love”
Hell yeah, just raw, super fast, and pissed off grimey
hardcore. I’m in. This thing just blasts right off and it
isn’t until the fourth song that they slow down at all. And even then it’s for under two
minutes. And then it just gets
fast again. I’d say it’s no real
feat to pack 14 fast hardcore songs into less than 20 minutes, but when those
songs got personality and the crazy energy just bleeds right out of the
speakers, well, that’s when you know you got something good. Sawchuk do that great thing of making
it absolutely clear that their unbridled live energy is translated to
record. It sounds like you’re in
the basement or VFW hall, or wherever with them. So if you damage your record, or speakers, or walls from
jumping off your bed (or setting it on fire) blame the band for creating the
false illusion you’re at a show they’re playing. Also, how dare they write a song that’s over two minutes
long, even if it’s a closer. (Dropping Bombs)
WOORMS, “Fatalismo”
I get the distinct impression these guys have more than a
slight liking for The Melvins. In
fact, it’s probably borderline fanaticism. Channeling Buzz and company straight from “Stoner Witch”
Woorms may not be original, but they sure do an homage justice. My only exposure to them thus far is
the recently released split they did with The Grasshopper Lies Heavy where they
offered up one 20+ minute long track filled with sludge, psychedelia, more than
a passing fancy with Electric Wizard, and other weird sounds. This new LP dials back a bit of the
psych and samples (just a bit) and goes more for sludgy riffs, a few noodley
early Mastodon-style guitar licks, and the occasional Sabbath nod. It veers off
into some more experimental territory closer to the end of the record, but then
brings back some stomp n’ sludge to close things out. For those seeking some variety in their swamp rock jazz
cabbage parties this makes for an interesting soundtrack. (Supernova Records)
