Life Forms - Life Forms
A strong little batch of melodic garage punk by some UK group - fans of stuff like Radioacticity, Sweet Reaper, Ex-White, Booji Boys, Telecult, Steve Adamyk Band or Sonic Avenues listen up!
Album-Stream →Nasty Party - Loaded Dice
While i couldn't quite warm up to the previous EP of Sydney's Nasty Party, with their newest release they really hit the spot once again just like their did with their brilliant debut EP. Treading in somewhat similar territory to Mekons- and Television Personalities-worshipping groups á la Suburban Homes, Silicone Values or Proto Idiot, they round things off with a strong Buzzcocks flavor.
The Missed - Activation
After their more power pop-leaning debut EP, the first full length of this Cleveland group featuring Nervosas' Mickey Marie on guitar and vocals, while not a exactly departure from their previous record, expands their color palette quite a bit. Overall the vibe here is more grim and melancholy, steering closer to moody yet melodic post punk territory with a distinct Wipers influence while once again proving their stunning ability at crafting catchy and unique hooks. Of more recent bands, you might consider them in a loosely related Orbit to groups like The Estranged and Daylight Robbery.
Album-Stream →Exwhite - Estray
I'm kinda blown away right now by the strength of that latest EP by a group probably based somewhere around the Leipzig/Berlin/Halle axis of garage- and post punk. What we get is simply first rate melodic garage shit recorded in appropriately rough fidelity, simple and stupid, stunningly effective and completely endearing. A feast for admirers of, say, Booji Boys, Sweet Reaper, Telecult… even some hint of Radioactivity / Marked Men is evident here.
Album-Stream →Priors - NEWNEWNEW
A yummy new EP by Montreal punks Priors delivering three new infectious smashers starting off with some garage-meets-hardcore energy akin to sped-up Useless Eaters or Mononegatives, followed by a super effective midtempo post punk stomper with a hint of Wire. The closing track, then, has a bit of a Screamers and Devo vibe to it and also bears some similarity to more recent stuff by Isotope Soap.
Fuera De Sektor - El Mundo Sigue
Not sure where these folks are based - La Vida Es Un Mus Discos' bandcamp page mentions uruguayan bands as an inspiration so maybe that's where the good shit is happening? Their facebook profile might clarify things but these days, i'd rather stay in the dark forever than logging onto that stinking heap of crap one more time (speaking of which… C'mon fuckers, what are all of you still doing over there? Move your punk asses over to the open, independent, non-corporate fediverse! Bring your friends over too!). Well, whether that's the case or not, their style of post punk reminds me quite a bit of Barcelona punks Algara for more than just their spanish vocals, albeit with a nice melodic street punk vibe and a slight touch of The Estranged on top.
Album-Stream →Canadian Rifle - I'm Just Like You 7"
Uh… these folks appear to have been at it for ages now, yet this is the first time i've ever stumbled upon their music. The Chicago group's latest EP is one hell of a treat made up of melodic punk rock with a certain rough 80's SST-era alt rock edge - the specific breed that became kind of a thing again for a short period in the early 2010s but has since then been an increasingly rare ocurrence once again. Think of a mix between early Milk Music, Needles//Pins, California X, Commander Keen or Happy Diving.
Feed - Western Fun // Djinn - Relapse // Zhoop - Top Shelf
I don't think i've ever given this dude from Hammond, Indiana the full spotlight he deserves here, although you might've encountered his shit on some Verspannungskassette mixtapes, where his various alter egos have been a regular occurrence in recent months. Now here are three of his latest batches of minimalist hardcore punk, each of his projects sounding pretty similar if you account for some slight variation in tempo and intensity… as well as some added bottom-of-the-barrel-end electronic reenforcement in the case of Feed, which should've rightfully earned him the title of greatest stylophone player in hardcore punk by now.
Album-Streams →The Neuros - The Neuros 7"
This Melbourne group delivers some of the most straight-the-fuck-ahead, no-frills ancient-school '77 style (garage-) punk imaginable on their debut EP, kinda like a way, way more traditional sounding incarnation of Amyl and the Sniffers. The fact they're able to pull this thing off without sounding the least bit stale and dusty speaks for their chops as a band as much as the raw strength of their songcraft.
Viceprez - Juger
Wow, this group from Borée, France is juggling a shitload of different styles with striking confidence on their debut album. The thing starts out with a short, straightforward, simple blast of hardcore punk, then has them cycling through a wide array of styles including forceful postcore, hard rockin' upper-mid-tempo garage rock/-punk, groovy angular post punk and even some vaguely Pixies-esque, surf-infused oldschool 80s indie-/alternative rock. All of this they pull off with ease - there's not a single weak link on this record. Impressive shit all the way through!
Album-Stream →