An awesome debut cassette by this group out of Athens, Geoargia, delivering a salvo of fuzzed out tunes on the intersection of hardcore- and KBD-soaked garage punk. While at times resembling the noise-laden output of groups á la Lumpy and the Dumpers, Soupcans and Black Button i think this stuff would fit equally well within the catalogs of LoFi specialist cassette labels Impotent Fetus and Deluxe Bias, having a similar shambolic energy in common with acts like Septic Yanks, C-Krit, early Electric Chair, Exxxon and Motor Corp.
Two outstanding releases rolled in this week dabbling in unapologetically oldschool aesthetics, both prevailing in their own way by fairly different means. No Brains from Utrecht, Netherlands present an uncompromisingly straightforward blend of timeless garage punk and early eighties, somewhat hardcore- and KBD-adjacent noises. I give this shit 0/10 stars for originality and 20/10 stars for sheer unrelenting force. That averages out to an actual 10/10 record, mind you. You think otherwise? That's 'cos you suck at math dude, deal with it. Also plenty of garage action, although with more of a '77 and power pop vibe, is what we get on a brand new EP by California group The Celebrities via US garage punk bulwark Total Punk. A bit more relaxed tempo-wise but these are perfectly fun and catchy little tunes with some pronounced Dead Boys-meet-Dickies energy goin' on here, making for an exquisite sugar rush of an admittedly, at times, kinda cheesy quality which thankfully always gets countered by way an expertly crafted wall of fuzz. I give it a 11/10 for all the glitz, glamour and star power. Maths man, nothing we can do about it.
Excellent new rough and noisy shit from this Perth, Australia group operating on the intersections of garage- and hardcore punk with an added distinct oldschool KBD-Vibe not entirely dissimilar to the likes of the Liquid Assets, Freakees, Liposuction, Launcher or Mystic Inane. An EU edition of this beauty is promised to drop pretty soon via Goodbye Boozy Records!
The LA group's second EP via Popular Affliction Records considerably ups their game with a strong bundle of new tunes while staying largely true to their previous sound, applying a curious synthpunk spin to a rough style of garage punk not dissimilar to the likes of Freakees, Launcher, Liposuction and Liquid Assets.
It's a new LP by the Detroit group and as you might already suspect, there's not a whole lot in the way of surprises here, which is totally fine for their particular local flavour of garage mayhem. As far as fairly traditional, heavily Stooges-/MC5-informed garage punk (and just maybe, a hint of Feedtime?) goes, it doesn't get much better in terms of raw, primal energy. This is the kind of record which convinces almost exclusively by virtue of brute force and boy do i feel saved now, which is to say: Ouch!
Three hardcore releases especially stuck out this week, all of 'em more or less treading off the genre's beaten paths. The most conventionally sounding - relatively speaking of course - is the EP by People's Temple on NY label RoachLeg Records, giving us an extremely tuneful variation on 80s hardcore, at times coming across like a blend of Circle Jerks with early-to-middle-era Naked Raygun and with occasional flourishes of Hüsker Dü to boot. Of more recend Bands, Fried E/m might also fit the bill. Hickey's tape on Archfiend records then infuses contemporary strands of garage-, synth- and eggpunk weirdness with plenty of oldschool hardcore energy, along the way also evoking the some vibes of Flipper, Spike in Vain, Broken Talent… With this release, we might just be entering the eggcore era! Montreal's Hood Rats operate in a vaguely similar territory, also having a sound grounded in garage punk brimming with lo-fi eggpunk quirkyness just as much as with an unkempt KBD energy and the tunes to make it stick.
This Santa Ana group emits short and noisy KBD-soaked artifacts, equal parts oldschool garage- and hardcore punk with the occasional touch of Gun Club. The overall impression ain't too far off Neo Neos or any of maestro Voltaire's various hardcore projects, early Erik Nervous and maybe some hint of Launcher, meshed together with some beautiful accident of the kind that might've just as well occured on some random Deluxe Bias or Impotent Fetus release.
Here's yet another short and sweet tape carrying one of those delicious oldschool hardcore/KBD-style/Garage Punk hybrids, so simple and elegant and flawless in its execution. I never get tired of this kind of shit.
More quality shit courtesey of Deluxe Bias. This absurdly short cassingle of noise in the realm of KBD-informed weirdcore, garage- and post punk will sure be a delight to folks who've already developed a huge boner for Mystic Inane, Rolex or Fried E/M.
Another moldy wet lump of ultracontagious punk shit, equal parts garage punk, KBD-style mischief and hardcore punk of the very old school. Not too far off from stuff like Liquid Assets, Fried E/M or Launcher.
