V/A Moncton’s Burning: 18 Slabs From the Underground LP
This one has been on the backburner for far too long and we apologize for the misplacement. Here we have a very solid collection of local indie rock and melodic punk bands from the small town of Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada, recorded between 2011 and 2022, with aspects of late ’70s early ’80s French punk and catchy North American punk, and dare I say hardcore grunge at times. Thinking everything from RAMONES to LEMONHEADS to RIVERDALES to JOAN JETT to TAD to PUBLIC NUISANCE. Also getting vibes of DINOSAUR JR, MODERN LOVERS, L7, ATTAK, DETROIT COBRAS, MEAN JEANS, the BRIEFS, SHONEN KNIFE, DIRT…there are eighteen jangly Canadian rocker acts on this comp, and I don’t want to go through them all, but for one single self-described “small” town, this a great and eclectic offering. Parts garage, hardcore, punk, blues, lots of edge, swagger, and distortion, and even some cool synth post-punk moments. I’ve made the gut-instinct first impression comparisons above, but in pretty much all cases, these bands I’ve never heard of are nowhere near demo-quality. This is a totally professionally recorded collection. Overall, I love how all over the place this comp is, and how well it is curated as a play-though. It really flows and I, again, wish I got to it sooner. Although you are burning, Moncton, you sound damn cool to me.