Reviews

Guerilla Asso

V/A Peace, Unity, Noise And Having Fun: Tekken Tribute & Remixes LP

So this compilation LP is apparently a tribute to the French fastcore band TEKKEN. I regret to announce I was not familiar with TEKKEN the band, but it looks as though they were around in the late ’90s and early ’00s, and with some video research, I have realized that they were pretty good! If you like to blast off with CHARLES BRONSON, SPAZZ, DAMNABLE EXCITE ZOMBIES, AGATHOCLES, or even FANTOMAS, or any bands that were forming when fastcore was really breaking into its stride, I have this recommendation for you! There’s also some really bizarre MIDI carnival music, which I must admit I am entertained by, if not perplexed.

Versus You A Collection: 2009–2024 2xLP

Do you enjoy pop punk (or at least something from the dozens of kinds of pop punk that have been crammed in that clown car of a term)? Then you’ll probably enjoy VERSUS YOU. This release collects and remixes/remasters tunes from the last fifteen years of the band’s history, and while this is my first encounter with them (maybe because it’s probably hard to push out into the world from Luxembourg), this is right up my alley—I am a staunch pop punk enjoyer. Musically, we’re somewhere in the neighborhood of fellow European acts like the APERS or propulsive American pop punk purveyors like TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET, but there are moments where they pull from more indie-rock-leaning stuff like BROADWAY CALLS when crafting some radio-ready melodies. That’s not to say it doesn’t pack a punch: the production across the collection is clean and strong, there’s some killer solos here and there, and the gruff vocals keep it well off from coming across weak. Lyrically, this has some clever moments and stays within the margins of personal, political, and the combination of the two you get with the better examples of this kind of music. This is a great surprise; it stands out with songcraft and attention to melody way above the plurality of its peers, and I will be going back to examine their considerable discography after sampling them here.