Reviews

We Don't Make It

Doc Flippers Human Pork LP

Second full-length from this Leipzig quintet, and it’s quite a confounding one. The eleven songs on Human Pork ping-pong from power pop to cowpunk to post-hardcore to dirge-y downer punk, with little holding things together beyond a mid-fi production and a persistent warble effect that seems to be thrown on pretty much everything. Oddly enough, though, that’s kind of enough to make this feel like a cohesive release. Still, it certainly has its ups and downs. The power pop tracks on here are some of the catchiest I’ve heard this decade—give “Steel Splinters” or “Celine Doom” a spin and try to not sing them to yourself as soon as you turn the record off. And “Human Pork” is one of the best bile-spitting downer punk numbers that I’ve heard since the demise of BLACK PANTIES. On the other hand, I’m absolutely all set on these “early COUNTRY TEASERS meets circusy egg-punk” tracks. On paper it sounds like it might be fine, but nah. And I don’t know that I’ve wanted to unhear a song more than I do “Stiffy Girl.” Woof!

Julien Papen Theelevator cassette

Everything on this cassette was written and all instruments played by one JULIEN PAPÈN from Lugano, Switzerland, who toes the line somewhere between psychedelia, garage rock, and bedroom pop. The first song is pretty long and drone-y, and I was a bit turned off to it at the beginning, but by the time the tape got to the song “Winter Is Fun” I was ironically very warmed up to it. That is unquestionably the stand-out bopper on this release. There are certainly some very cool aspects here, but some of the songs are just too darn long. Four and a half minutes, five minutes, six minutes. Get right to it, and this project would instantly be better, but I suppose that is one potential drawback of solo projects: no one to help tug on the reigns while working the kinks out of songs.

Leopardo Di Caprio LP

LEOPARDO is a one-man band from Switzerland that plays dreamy, atmospheric pop music. The songs stretch and breathe. They are sophisticated, then childlike. I like what Julie Bugnard said about him: “Mais Leopardo se différencie par son romantisme lo-fi si particulier et son garage trash et naïf.” (“LEOPARDO is differentiated by his so particular lo-fi romanticism and his trash and naïve garage.”) Naïve garage is a great phrase, and sums it up nicely.

Leopardo Is It An Easy Life? LP

Psychedelic rock from Switzerland in the vein of the VELVET UNDERGROUND. The songs are generally on the upbeat side of things, but not necessarily poppy. They’re a little weird, a little off-kilter, the vocals run toward the TINY TIM side of things. Head noddable, yes but not exactly danceable. The two best songs on here are the ones that don’t really fit. “Happiness” is a slow, sparse, ambient, folkish thing that reminds me of a song by one of the Kilgour brothers. It’s followed by the catchy as hell, “I Wanna Tame You,” a pop gem. I’d listen to those two songs over and over.

Sun Cousto Satan and I Walk Under a Rainbow LP

Satanic VASELINES fans from Switzerland made a record! Playful DIY pop death for girls that are bored of VENOM? The guitar sound reminds me of NÜ SENSAE: kind of dirge skreee but this veers into cool bedroom-sounding naive pop ’80s tape trader sound too?! Less grrrrunge, more a wild journey with Satan! It reminds me of Scottish indie pop groups! Falling apart charm. They definitely have the self-aware cynicism the VASELINES had that is so absent in so many of their followers. This is not twee! Investigate!