Another Tunic record, another veritable kick in the teeth. After their recent compilation LP Exhaling, collecting their previous singles & EPs, their second “real” album pretty much continues where they left off with those, while only very cautiously expanding their sonic vocabulary. At times this can feel a bit repetitive to the point where you catch yourself wondering: “Haven’t i already heard that song just a minute ago?” That’s a minor nitpick though. As long as these dudes continue to wield their noisemaking powertools with such determination and raw, overwhelming force, that’s more than enough for me.
This melbourne group’s debut EP delivers five versatile high-energy blows, shapeshifting their way somewhere around the fringes of the extended hard-/post-/noisecore multiverse, their relentless yet sophisticated attack calling to mind the likes of Dollhouse, Cement Shoes or Vexx.
Cleveland punks The Cowboy have yet to release a record that doesn’t totally rip and their third LP won’t dissapoint either with their sound feeling perfectly worn in and at this point, i’d say they’ve established their very own, instantly recognizable micro-niche on the intersection of propulsive garage punk and abrasive noise rock while still breaking things up enough to keep shit interesting.
Um… so there’s a new Escape-ism record out and the situation around last year’s awkward self-cancellation of Ian Svenonius is still murky as fuck.
Quick refresher: Last year, around the time when it became known that the California garage label and record store Burger Records had been a hotbed for sexual predators and creeps for years at that point, reiginiting the discussion around sexism and predatory behavior in the punk scene (also leading Burger Records to cease operations soon after), Washington D.C. scene legend Ian Svenonius (of Nation of Ulysses, The Make-Up, Weird War, Chain and the Gang, Escape-Ism, XYZ…) did a weird kind of self-cancellation post on instagram, admitting to predatory or at least very creepy behavior towards women in the past and apologizing for it, then deleting the whole thing soon after.
The reactions were varied. Merge Records seem to have gained some deeper knowledge about the accusations and deemed them severe enough to sever ties with Ian Svenonius. Dischord Records, on the other hand, who should also know a thing or two, are still working with him, keeping his old records in print and in-stock. The new Escape-ism record, while not a Dischord release, is being sold via the Dischord Records website right now. No clue how to interpret that coming from a label that has been so well known for their strong ethics in the past.
I’m just gonna say, the whole situation stinks. It’s been over a year and we know pretty much nothing about what was happening around Ian Svenonius. As a fan, music blogger, webcaster, i am especially conflicted. What kind of person am i supporting if i buy his records? Can i still justify posting his stuff? Should i remove all of his music from 12XU Radio?
At first, i really wanted to give Ian Svenonius the benefit of the doubt. It seemed like he was actually feeling remorse for his actions (their severity still being unknown) and some dude actually apologizing, being honest about it and willing to work through his shit would have actually felt kinda refreshing at that point.
Instead, it looks to me like the punk scene has collectively agreed to shove the whole thing under the rug, not demand any answers and move on as if nothing actually ever happened. Once again, everyone gets the silence treatment. I think that’s the worst possible way to go about this. This. Sucks. So. Much.
Big Bopper Gold Diggers Manifesto Cutters Midnight Bus Deodorant Top Urn Pink Dice Deficit Deficit Dye Under Pressure Doms Model Head Fast Food Desensitized
Lappen Nackt im Keller Liquids Fuck Up Cherry Cheeks D.A.C. 3D & The Holograms MS-DOS Smirk Minuscule Amounts Dudd Dilemma Figure It Out Mononegatives Myoclonic Reality Suspended
Maniac Chance Laughing Gear New Estate Daisy Daisy Toothfairy Constant Cold War Swarm Rider/Horse Tremolo Harm John (timestwo) Stadium Of No
Nightwatchers Their Turn Trying to Rule the World Algara Economía Mess Traidores C.O.F.F.I.N City Sun Dead Finks (My Human) Extinction Mini Skirt Diy Nightmare
The debut EP of this group from Utrecht, Netherlands is pure concentrated joy from start to finish, channeled into five properly demented synth-/garage punk jams wondrously able to bypass the intellect entirely only to make an even bigger splash with your primal instincts. Neat!
The London postcore/noise rock duo once again convinces by way of sheer force coupled with unerring precision, every single detonation on their second LP using a rather minimalistic recipe in the most focused way possible to achieve maximum damage. Don’t miss this spectacle if groups like Tunic, Death Pedals, USA Nails or Metz are your thing.
