Reviews

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D.B.R. Boogie Nights cassette

D.B.R. appears to be a solo-recording project from Denes Bieberich. The Bandcamp copy just attributes the recording to “…a mysterious being who interacts in German bands such as BENZIN, PIGEON, LIIEK, OSTSEETRAUM, and much more.” Bieberich also makes music under the name DEE BEE RICH, which would seem to seal my suspicions that he alone is behind this project. But DEE BEE RICH doesn’t sound all that much like what’s on this cassette, and there seem to be different vocalists from track to track. All the aforementioned acts seem to be pretty incestuous too, so I wouldn’t be surprised if some of those folks are chipping in. Nor would I be surprised to learn that the vocals are being pitched up on some of the tracks. It reminds me of Mark Winter’s shenanigans, particularly around his project GSB (a.k.a. GORDON SPICER BAND, a.k.a. GOLDMAN’S SEX BATTALION). Mark’s clearly providing a musical influence here as well. But this is by no means CONEHEADS-core. Instead, this project takes some of that scene’s trappings and applies them with a light touch to create mostly minimal post-punk tracks. Like, “Nuclear Family” almost sounds like YOUNG MARBLE GIANTS, but with skittery C.C.T.V. drums and very faint cartoony rubber band funk guitars. And though some of the other five tracks are less minimal, more punk, or more sci-fi, that’s kinda the gist of the whole release. It’s actually pretty cool!

Ex-White Stalker cassette

EX-WHITE is a garage punk band from Germany. They are steeped in the ’00s style of the genre. Their sound is bratty and gritty. It is messy and trashy, distorted and angsty, but there is also a melodic side.

Hot Chicks Legalize It cassette

If the band name and tape title didn’t already set low expectations, the détourned RAMONES cover art and cassette shell decorated with pot leaves almost certainly would, but thankfully, HOT CHICKS aren’t Burger-eating party-bro goofballs, but rather some Leipzig movers and shakers from bands like LASSIE and EX-WHITE having fun with a femme-forward, synth-caked side project. Lise Sutter of MARAUDEUR, COUTEAU LATEX, etc. recorded and mixed this (and might even be in the band, it’s hard to tell who exactly those fake RAMONES are), and even without that connection, HOT CHICKS’ twitchy nuevo-wave art-garage immediately hit me as an even less self-serious twin to Sutter’s group the STACHES—blasé lead vocals with animated girl-gang backing chants, econo surf-trash guitar, squiggly sci-fi synth, metronomic drums. I’m partial to the robotically detached “Misfortune Day,” with shades of early DEVO without cracking any eggs, and the naggingly insistent “Fox,” which flips from extremely MARAUDEUR-esque punctuated, post-punky verses to tambourine-rattling sass in its choruses, but the whole thing is worth a blaze.

Onyon Onyon cassette

Berlin has been the dominant player in the neo-Neue Deutsche Welle scene, from the Allee Der Kosmonauten collective (AUS, DIE SCHIEFE BAHN, etc.) to the recent output of the Mangel label (with the likes of KLAPPER and OSTSEETRAUM), but just a few hours to the south, the much smaller city of Leipzig has been holding its own, too—last year’s killer LP from MARAUDEUR exuded playful, synth-damaged art-punk cool, and this debut cassette from the new quartet ONYON brings shrouded-but-spiky, subtly goth-tinted post-punk à la early XMAL DEUTSCHLAND out of the Cold War and into the digital age. Vocals alternate between German and English, rarely deviating from a sternly deadpan shout, the beats are of the martial, unwaveringly hi-hat/snare-forward variety, and period-perfect ’80s keys help to scratch that waved-out Zickzack itch. When they raise the urgency level a bit, like on “Octopus” and especially “Klick,” ONYON pushes through the fog of mid-tempo cold-punk and right into the keyed-up synth punk territory of KITCHEN & THE PLASTIC SPOONS—those moments are when the tape really blazes; hoping they lean even harder into the wild electro-art-punk impulses next time around.

Reality P.R.O.M.O. cassette

Cool tape with two long tracks from this Israel-based solo project that opens with a great GOBLIN-style synth dirge, all digital bells and deep, bubbling atmosphere. Then it gets really weird, with a truly unique vocal approach that sounds unlike anything I have heard before. The closest thing I can compare the down-tuned, altered vocals is maybe DJ SCREW’s productions, but imagine that over snaky post-punk/indie guitars and electronic drums. It sounds like a Speak & Spell left between melted JOY DIVISION and SONIC YOUTH tapes. There are many great, chiming call-and-response guitar lines that are both dissonant and shimmering with beauty. While disconcerting at first, I found this very listenable and interesting all the way through. Recommended.

Verräter Verräter cassette

This cassette is completely drenched in reverb and dripping with attitude. The band is coming in with a sightly newer sounding version of hardcore, really in the vein of ALIEN NOSEJOB or UBIK. It’s slightly more spacy, but more frenetic and free with itself. If you’re not into that sound just wait until they whip out the synthesizer because that’s when things really get good. Tracks like “Narrow Minded” are just damn filthy with the distorted synth. If you do give this a listen you’re in for a ride to say the least, but I think it’s worth it.