Reviews

For review and radio play consideration:

Please send vinyl (preferred), CD, or cassette releases to MRR, PO Box 3852, Oakland, CA 94609, USA. Maximum Rocknroll wants to review everything that comes out in the world of underground punk rock, hardcore, garage, post-punk, thrash, etc.—no major labels or labels exclusively distributed by major-owned distributors, no reviews of test pressings or promo CDs without final artwork. Please include contact information and let us know where your band is from!

Fatal Brutal Kontaktschuld EP

Debut vinyl release from this German band. Showcasing a cutting guitar tone, the intro to “Kintaktschuld” cops the riff from SEX VID’s “Footsteps” before kicking into an urgent and pummeling HC assault. Six short tracks that make their point and don’t overstay their welcome. Every element comes together nicely here: songwriting, recording quality, even the cover art (dino skeletons?) has an off-the-wall appeal. My inner sleeve here is numbered 255 so this one might be limited. Good stuff.

Agnostic Front First Warning LP

The earliest A.F. tracks don’t even sound like music to my ears. Everything—the riffs, the ultra-primitive drumming, the fuzzed-out string bend in the intro to “Final War”—is far enough removed from traditional rock’n’roll that I almost wonder whether these guys listened to anything besides the sounds of breaking garbage trucks and subway trains before they hit the studio. I mean, if Realities of War is a truncheon to the face, United Blood is like someone ripped the streetlight at 7th and A out of the f’n sidewalk and dropped it on your skull. If that’s your idea of a good time, consider this compilation, subtitled “The United Blood’ Era Recordings, New York City, 1983.” All material was previously released on Grand Theft Audio’s Raw Unleashed CD a while back, and this LP shares many tracks with the superior No One Rules collection on Radio Raheem, technically getting away with the “several songs on vinyl for the very first time” sales point by including an alternate mix of the EP tracks. Anyway, it looks cool and features five different versions of “United Blood” on a single disc.

BOOJI BOYS Tube Reducer LP

You’re probably familiar with this Canadian act via their prior efforts, having made a significant amount of racket across a few LPs in just a short amount of time. Part of me is on board with their homespun, hiss-fi takes on MARKED MEN-style buzz-pop, but then I grow a bit weary of the one-dimensional onslaught of it all. There are plenty of people content to listen to shit like this exclusively, but I just ain’t one of ’em. Loyalists have at, I guess.

Current Affairs Object & Subject LP

Radio-ready post-punk from Scotland. At CURRENT AFFAIRS’ center is this big-’80s black ice sound, one that’s almost entirely referential—a dark dance between obvious influences like SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES and JOY DIVISION—but still totally stirring. I’m sometimes left wondering where they really are amidst all this well-schooled swiping, but if “Breeding Feeling” is any indication, they’re cued up at the fuckin’ bank, trying to cash their royalty checks. Not the only hit to be heard here, either. A very impressive outing.

Freak Genes III LP

Third dispatch from this synth-punk duo, part of the PROTO IDIOT and HIPSHAKES camp, always worth a look-see. FREAK GENES hit some kinda sweet-spot between “lite” pop and punk churn, recalling JAY REATARD’s synth-centered flirtations in both songwriting and sound. Not a lot of deviation tune-to-tune though, making this merely a fun exercise rather than a must-hear album.

The Tea Set Back in Time for Tea CD

Time for tea! What we have here is a collection of singles and EPs by the TEA SET between ’78 and ’81, along with a couple of extra tracks tacked on. Often overlooked in the punk/post-punk pantheon (perhaps because they never released an album, although they did appear on a Messthetics comp), these art students specialized in DIY clatter with a dramatic flourish; channeling post-BUDGIE prog-punk on “On Them,” and making the everyday seem esoteric on the disco funk of “Tri X Pan.” While it’s great to have all these fantastic singles in one place, I would love to see them presented in a more elaborate package in keeping with the fantastic artwork that accompanied the original singles; The slim booklet that comes in the digipak CD doesn’t do them justice.

Black Heino Pfaffenbrot / SchÁ¼sse Von Links und Rechts 7″

This is the first volume in a series of singles recorded on a Tascam 4-track. BLACK HEINO cranks out plenty of volume from the limited but versatile machine: The garage punk romp of “Pfaffenbrot” leaps out of the grooves and grabs you by the throat. The flip is a German-language cover of MAGAZINE’s “Shot By Both Sides” sung from the point of view of an internet troll. Overall, a worthwhile if not essential exercise, and anyway, the single appears to be already sold out.

Negativ Projections LP

NEGATIV of Oslo plays metallic punk along the lines of POSSESSED and SEPTIC DEATH meets the SCREAMERS or RUDIMENTARY PENI. This extremely catchy LP is part BLAZING EYE redeye punk and dark riffing, and part double-kicking TOXIC HOLOCAUST metal. Pit-churning maniacal anthems from start to finish—this would have probably made my top ten if I had heard it when it was released in April. Densely and clearly produced. You will drool and squeal, bobbing your cavernous cranium along to this slab of lunacy. NEGATIV sounds finitely death punk and infinitely grim thrash simultaneously, all while powering through with unique bizarre measure. Can I go see them with ZYANOSE, PARANOID, SEX DWARF in early 2020!? Damn, fire gig!

The Wilful Boys Life Lessons LP

The WILFUL BOYS are a Brooklyn band fronted by an Australian. Their sound has a backwoods, deep-voiced, thundering sound. The music is heavy and plodding with a twinge of poppiness. The vocals are earnest and metronomic. The tunes thrash and shred and get a bit too noodle-y before going back to straightforward rock’n’roll. All that seemingly messiness sounds kind of nice with the lights turned down and your head on the floor.

AninoKo Ugat LP

I’m just going to say that ANINOKO is the most important band in the Bay Area. Their shows are events: families, kids, activists, punks…their community is represented and their community is present at their shows, and that community is open, welcoming, and supportive. Their hardcore is full intensity, and they somehow managed to cram that energy into these tiny vinyl grooves so effectively that I get chills when I hear Jesse’s bass start “Buhay At Lupa” just like I do when they play live. A band made up of Filipino immigrants, singing in Tagalog and confronting issues that directly impact their community and the Filipino diaspora. They just do it a little faster than most activists. ANINOKO doesn’t just fill up space with their hardcore, they open up space for themselves and everyone around them to grow. These people are real, this music is real, and this music is fucking important.

BKS DIY TNT EP

Hi-energy fastcore with (occasional) melodic bits masked by sheer speed (It’s a proven and effective technique, and I support its implementation). A solid Cappo yeeoowll creeps in at times, just as they’re about to unleash, and they do a nice job of dropping catchy breakdown and intro riffs into the mix to keep things interesting. Eleven tracks here, and not a shred of bullshit to be found (the CRO-MAGS cover is completely unnecessary, but it’s still not bad).

Droids Blood Be Free LP

They want it to sound like a troupe of aliens giving some hard-driving garage punks a lap dance, and that’s pretty much where they landed. This thing has a frustration that almost conjures Revolution Summer (take “Half Sacrifice” as an example), and a driving force that dominates even the less chaotic songs. And speaking of those supposedly mellower moments, “Rotary Phone” is one of the slower tracks on Be Free, and it is an absolute stunner—a simply incredible track. Keyboards are subtle, intensity is constant, and even the moments that venture into indie territory are still just odd enough to keep them outside of any predetermined box. Closest modern comparison I get is DASHER, who were also in your face and in themselves at the same time. DROIDS BLOOD are worth way more listens, and I imagine I’m going to develop other opinions long after these words are public. For now, I’ll say that this is great; drop me a line in a few weeks and I’ll tell you the rest.

Flag of Democracy FODWorld LP

Just to be clear, we are talking about a band who the DEAD MILKMEN referenced on their first damn record…which came out in 1983. We’re talking about 37 years of essentially constant activity. I reviewed the No School No Core full-length last year and it was great, so I dropped the needle on FODWorld with high hopes. I was not let down. Fast, loose hardcore punk with a little more snot and melody that reaches back to their ’80s catalog. Nothing but respect from these ears, and I look forward to the next one.

Nukkehammer A Distant Hissing In Your Ear EP

It’s been an eternity since I’ve heard from these Ohio mongrels, and they haven’t gotten any nicer. Biting critiques masked as sarcasm, all delivered with a relentless noise punk fury. Guitars tortured more than distorted, drums like a hellish thunder, and multiple vocals that spend more time in conflict than in harmony. This is the leather clad raw pÁ¸nk that dominated the blogosphere airwaves and basements ten years ago, but NUKKEHAMMER still offer their wares with isolated originality and a learned intensity. And I still love this shit.

Crimson Ghostbusters Crimson Ghostbusters LP

Remember funny college dorm rock bands? These local vets crank it out punk style. Songs that walk that fine line between cover and mash up. Lots of MISFITS bits here mixed with BUGGLES, SLAYER, CHEAP TRICK, THIN LIZZY, TOM PETTY, and others. A good time that’s not for grumpy people.

Corner Boys Waiting for 2020 LP

This sounds so 1979 indie punk, where punk was really pop. PROTEX, POINTED STICKS, and even first-LP UNDERTONES comparisons are dead on. This is this Vancouver band’s debut LP, and it’s pretty damn solid. The raw production really makes a difference. Great LP!

Poison Boys Poppin’ Eyes and Flashing Feet 7″

A two-song 45 from these Chicago boys. Straight out of the STOOGES and JOHNNY THUNDERS school of rock’n’roll. This came out a year back, and they’ve since put out a full-length. Back in the day, they would have fit right in with that CBGB’s sound. Good stuff.

Jumpstarted Plowhards Round One CD

This band is Todd Congelliers of FYP and TOYS THAT KILL fame, and on bass is Mike Watt. Yes, that Mike Watt, along with multiple drummers. Eight spastic and twisted tunes that are under-produced and dissonant. This is very college rock circa 1990. I like it.

The Crawlers Planned Obsolescence 12″

This unknown-to-me PDX band existed in the first half of the 2000s for all too brief a moment. These tracks from 2010 have only seen the light of day on a not-so-seen CD comp previously. This band comes barrelling out the gate with fire and ferocity and an obvious worship at the church of Pig Champion and Slayer Hippy. That’s maybe a copout from where this band hails from but you could also compare them to GOVERNMENT WARNING, BLOOD PRESSURE, or most directly DIRECT CONTROL for the power trio factor. Don’t miss out on this super limited blast from the past.

Iena La Morte Chiama LP

This one completely caught me by surprise and knocked my Docs off. Some unspectacular cover art and an inner sleeve photo of some Italians with too much hair gave no warning for the hardcore boot-to-the-face Oi! onslaught to come. I don’t know if these Florence blokes are familiar with RIXE, but I’ve no doubt they’re well aware of the buzzsaw guitar assault of early NABAT, both of which are well-represented here. I believe the band name means “Hyena,” and the album title translates to “Death Calls,” which is totally fitting as this little slab wails and wails til you’re left calling for your madre, with not a loser track in the bunch. Slay your neighbor appropriately.

Negative Space Cruelty LP

Dark, bass-driven, noisy punk marked by a particularly bleak outlook. The seven songs here deal with themes of isolation, envy, guilt, anger, and death, and their effect on the mind and body; a sprechgesang report delivered forcefully and hoarsely over the sparse, minimal pulse of staccato guitar, punctuated in places by solid-state complaint. There is little room for light or hope to shine through. The band name could hardly be more apt: the group occupies a space adjacent to contemporary negative punks like STRUCTURE and DIÄT, or ancestral guides like CRISIS or WARSAW. “Eternal Rotation” distils the themes to their essence: “How long before your body is crushed by the column / To be taken by vehicle / To be taken by attack / To be taken by terminal illness.” Buy your ticket, kids, and sing along.

The Brankas Safes LP

Snap the compass, throw the charts overboard, delete MapQuest™: There are no maps that can help you where THE BRANKAS journey will take you. Pulsating, grinding, hornets’ nest Adderall-core™ with no respect for conventions of song structure. There’s a lot to unpack here, but if you are a fan of FAT DAY, the BOREDOMS, et al, I’d encourage you to check in.

Extroverts You Gotta Lose EP

It probably wasn’t easy being the first punk band in any city, but I bet it would be even weirder to be the first one in Regina, Saskatchewan. The EXTROVERTS hold that title; the eight songs on this 7″ were recorded in 1979. Like all early punk groups, the EXTROVERTS’ music is catchy and poppy with rough edges and attitude. The recordings are lo-fi, but there is something there. Song titles like “Nobody Knows Nothing” and “Brain Damage” nicely sum up the angst involved. Comes with a booklet containing the band’s story, photos, and fliers. Cool stuff.

Team Dresch Personal Best LP

Let’s rewind back to the mid-’90s, when yours truly was an uncertain queer punk teen living in the dismal suburbs and listening to TEAM DRESCH’s Personal Best every single day. I scrawled the lyrics from “Fake Fight” on my bedroom wall, much to my parent’s confusion. (“I cry out in the darkness forever to be free / And I cry out so my loneliness won’t get the best of me…”) I air-guitared and headbanged around my bedroom blasting “Freewheel” and “Screwing Yer Courage” over and over again. I wore my Candy-Ass Records “she eats it up” logo T-shirt to high school feeling like I was sharing an inside joke with freaks across the universe. Team Dresch made those difficult times feel less lonely and unbearable. The first person I ever worked up the nerve to come out to was Donna Dresch, in the form of a halting letter mailed to her label Chainsaw Records. I sent it off not expecting a response, but Donna responded with a hopeful letter telling me to keep fighting and to stay free. But all of this, as important as it was to me personally, would’ve been fleeting without the music. If you don’t know it already, I’ll just say it: TEAM DRESCH’s 1995 debut album Personal Best is a stone-cold fucking masterpiece. Every one of these ten songs utterly and totally rocks. I still listen to this record on repeat while air-guitaring and headbanging around my bedroom. There were other bands associated with riot grrrl and queercore that got (and continue to get) more notice, but TEAM DRESCH honestly blows them all away. Personal Best is one of the truly great rock albums of all time, and this gorgeous and excellent-sounding reissue does it the justice it deserves. All hail TEAM DRESCH: “They tested their limits / And broke all the rules!”

Team Dresch Captain My Captain LP

Damn, reviewing these TEAM DRESCH LP reissues—what an honor and what a responsibility! What can I say to adequately convey what these albums have meant to me and to so many queers, dykes, punks, and freaks for the last 25 years? This band saved my life and continues to save my life; they were the best band in the world when this album came out in 1996, and the best band I saw live in 2019. Captain My Captain, their sophomore album, features a different drummer—Marcéo Martinez left the band after Personal Best and Melissa York joined—and has a more introspective vibe than its predecessor, with several songs about dealing with depression and anxiety. Still, the musical formula is the same: heavy, rocking, and emotional queer punk anthems with monstrous guitar parts and transcendent dual vocals from the band’s singers Jody Bleyle and Kaia Wilson. The sublime opening track “Uncle Phranc” taught me what it means to claim a queer chosen family and features the best advice anyone could ever give a young dyke: don’t fuck with straight girls, don’t take pills, and don’t let anyone emotionally blackmail you into doubting who you are. 23 years after its initial release, the songs on this album still make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. What more can I say other than thank you TEAM DRESCH.

Carlos Dunga / Eat You Alive Carlos Dunga vs. Eat You Alive split EP

Absolute ripper in the form of an Italian fastcore split. CARLOS DUNGA inserts weird chuggas, unnecessary but awesome solos (and they open with a straight classic rock guitar solo intro that had me scratching my head before the ’core started) but basically deliver face-melting fastcore of the highest order. EAT YOU ALIVE are more metallic and “pro,” they look more to MUNICIPAL WASTE than to ___, but ultimately both bands just want to rage. And so they both rage. Also, I think this came out a number of years ago…

V/A Red Scare Industries: 15 Years of Tears and Beers CD

I guess if I’d have stopped to figure it out/think about it, I would have realized that Red Scare is only fifteen years young. It seems like they’ve been around forever, but I guess it makes sense that they are the sound of the new millennium. Certainly, they have consistently proven to more than emulate, and indeed, to help define what the more melodic end of punk and hardcore actually sound like over the last decade and a half. If Epitaph and then Fat both gestated and represented that 90s sound, Red Scare have picked up that blazing torch, reassembled and reinvigorated it, and hurled it headlong into this century, and then some. To celebrate, there’s fifteen artists, from the current Red Scare roster, with one track apiece. It’s hard to pick out standouts when the whole damn pack itself is leading, but I’ll mention my two faves. BRENDAN KELLY AND THE WANDERING BIRDS add a suitably genius twist to a LILLINGTONS standout, managing in this incarnation to channel the best of CAPTAIN SENSIBLE and ATOM AND HIS PACKAGE in a wonderful electro-pop gem, while THE BOMBPOPS channel BLINK 182 at their pop punk perfect pinnacle. Then again, it’s not as if the likes of the COPYRIGHTS, ELWAY, GARRETT DALE and RAMONA are also-rans. fifteen years to date, not a misstep to be seen, and they’re still reaching for the stars. Long live the comrades at Red Scare.

Snuggle! Holiday Heart LP

If this is your first introduction to SNUGGLE!, you’ve arrived at just the right time. I don’t say that to disparage any of their previous recordings (their full-length on 1-2-3-4 Go! is pretty fantastic, and they have a split with BENT OUTTA SHAPE), but more to heavily prop up this new release. Years ago I was neighbors with Jerome who sings in this band, which we found out by watching an abandoned squat house burn down in our shared alleyway together. I think the correlation here is that this band would watch the destruction of something so anti-capitalist, and still manage to pen an uplifting yet mournful anthem about it. The best I can think to describe SNUGGLE! is crust-informed pop punk. They have the speed that a lot of bubblegum punk lacks, but paired with sincere as fuck emotional lyrics about the human existence. I feel lucky that I’ve been able to see them play several times over the years, and am so happy there’s finally a recording of their song “Twinspeak.” The lyrics to this track are so emblematic to the comparison I made earlier: “Won’t let this be a crash and burn / From lift off, to return / Smoke rings fill the sky / Calligraphy to a night that understands / Understands gibberish.” It’s Aaron Cometbus’ modern day CRIMPSHRINE, but sung by a strong voice that’s raspy, nasal, and guttural. Sometimes Jerome’s voice breaks in a charming way that makes me think of what Bobcat Goldthwait would sound like fronting a punk band. They’re fucking great, and I’m stoked that we’re closing in on 2020 and there’s a new SNUGGLE! record in the world.

Teenage Bottlerocket Teenage Bottlerocket vs. Human Robots EP

A four-songer from the TEENAGE BOTTLEROCKET camp. Two songs from the band, including the new uptempo classic “Olivia Goes To Bolivia.” The second 2 songs are Ray and his son Milo dishing out some barely teenage angst music. This band can do no wrong for me.

Besmirchers Hate Your Life LP

These guys don’t even need my help trashing their record. The campiest kind of self-loathing and abuse on display, lyricly and aesthetically. The singer’s face is doused in blood in every photo I can find. Multiple creepy young-girl-in-panties images and song titles like “Inhalant Assailant,” “Dirty Panty Tourniquet,” “Needles in My Feet” and “Pocket Pussy.” The band name is awkward and the tunes aren’t memorable at all. It’s just so dumb and bad in every way.

Golpe De Gracia Cementerio Interior EP

Seems to be a skins ’n’ punks affair, but the snotty lead vocal carries it more toward the punk side, which works better for me. The two definitive Oi! clues are the gang choruses and a couple skinhead guys pictured on the lyric sheet. Overall, more scrappy vibes than tough. Not much else to report about this Madrid band outside of a few likeable guitar and vocal hooks. Could just have easily emerged out of L.A. from Silenzio Statico or Verdugo Discos.

Juggling Jugulars Insurrection CD

Thirteen more aggressively melodic punk songs from a band that’s been at it for thirty years now. A solid, clearly-produced sound with a nice guitar melody here, strong backup vocal there. Direct calls to action against borders, cops, capitalist control, and even old washed up posers! Their dedication to anti-fascist DIY punk cannot be understated. I missed the last couple of releases, so I’m taking this as a friendly reminder that Finland’s JUGGLING JUGULARS remain a reliable inspiration.

Kizza Ping Först River Man Allt LP

Despite the unpromising band name, Linköping’s KIZZA PING recorded some notable punk music during the first couple years of the ’80s. This LP compiles “Männen” and “Lär I Tid” from their lone 45, along with seven more vocal-driven punk tracks with keyboards that add up to a worthwhile album. New Wave influences pushed KIZZA PING into doing something more complex sounding than your basic stripped-down teenage punk, and thankfully there’s still a jagged edge to the production, so let’s call it post-punk! While this label frankly suits them best, I still feel like “post-punk” has become too much of a generic signifier to flop onto KIZZA PING without acknowledging their consistently great songs. I’ll describe it as a cool cross-section between HAGAR THE WOMB and country-mates LIVIN SACRIFICE. I once ate halfway decent pizza in Gothenburg, but I’m not convinced that there can be any true Kings of Pizza that far north of Italy. That being said, this is a great document of old Swedish punk, and I’ve added it to my wantlist.

Batshit Crazy Bat$hit!crazy CD

This band claims influences of BLACK FLAG, MISFITS, and SCREECHING WEASEL but I’m just hearing screamo and melodic emo. Think Warped Tour circa 2010, which isn’t meant as a put down. Not my go-to genre, but this is decent, especially if you are in high school and wear lots of black.

Råttanson I’d Much Rather Be With the Noise LP

I wish there was more noise on this release from this Swedish combo. There’s a lot of ’60s ROLLING STONES worship going on here. In fact, it makes me want to hear some ’60s STONES, which isn’t even my favorite era of them. A dash of ’60s organ and some ’70s power pop in the mix as well. Probably best for the ’60s fashion crowd.

Control Freaks She’s the Bomb LP

This local band is the latest Greg Ripoff combo. A fun garage punk romp with dual male/female vocals. On their second full-length, they have a new woman on co-vocals, and the songs are short simple, and catchy. A fun band live as well, if you can tolerate an insult or two.

V/A Vent the Spew Vol. 1 LP

File under “I guess you had to be there.” This is a collection of Columbus, OH-area bands from 1993-95. A reissue of Burnt Sienna Label recordings featuring multiple tracks from five bands: PET UFO, CLAY, MOODY JACKSON, MY WHITE BREAD MOM, and HAIRY PATT BAND. On the upside, this is punk from a self-described “Cowtown” and it’s thrash-y and decent.

The Gerbils Are You Sleepy LP

So this is the 20th anniversary release of this album on Elephant 6. I can’t say I knew this band, as I never really followed this label during my 90’s lo-fi tolerant days. This band did include members of NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL, who recently had no problem selling out good sized theaters on their reunion tour, though their main songwriter was not in this band. Anyways, this reminds me early PAVEMENT with more going on. One for lo-fi enthusiasts.

Sicko In the Alternate Timeline CD

So SICKO is back together, or maybe not—they did just play recently. I used to see this band in the ’90s during pop punk’s golden era. This is a “best of” collection, and it’s a pop punk ripper. Very cool energetic pop tunes that stay away from the RAMONES worship thing. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. A good starting point for the pop punkers who don’t know this Seattle band.

Soga Demo LP

A trio of “all-star” punks from Mexico City make a seriously satisfying racket. SOGA (“rope” en ingles) shines through short punk-as-fuck guitar solos and rage-inducing rhythmic clatter. Each member contributes to the singing, shouting, and screaming—separately and in unison—solidifying a powerful collaborative outrage. “Fiambre” is my pick for most fucked and ferocious, while “Vil Migala” gets honorable mention for being a sped up and not-crass UFO Dictator. If you’ve been endeared by the likes of CREMALLERAS, TERCER MUNDO, or RIÁ‘A it would be a huge mistake to skip this one. I’m generally skeptical of demos being put to vinyl, but this one was a no-brainer.

Bullmoose Hot Garbage CD

Sports bar hard rock / safe metal with occasional pop aspirations. Not punk in the slightest. Been a long while since I dipped my toes in this sickly pond, but the stench here jogs my memory enough to cringe. Capably performed with pro-production slickness, but sadly imparting zero edge and negative soul. Hard pass.

Overrides Brain As a Fist CD

Anthemic, leather-clad punk from Southern California, half beach / half gutter varietals represented. The songs are uniformly catchy with a vague hard stance, recalling shite like BELTONES or other pop-tinged semi-toughies. “Offended By Everything” seems pretty indicative of 2019’s lyrical laziness: complaining about other people complaining. Surely there’s something more interesting to tie your creepers in a knot about…

The Freeze Calling All Creatures LP

I never have high hopes for reformed hardcore bands, especially when it’s been this long. Unfortunately too much gets lost over time and somehow the band simply forgets what they were all about and why people liked them. That said, THE PROLETARIAT’s new music kills, so there’s always an anomaly. This LP has some moments. Cliff Hanger’s lyrics and delivery are bratty, goofy and paranoid. The music is upbeat, if a bit too busy. This isn’t THE FREEZE of my youth, but there is still some fun left in these aging punks.

Thigh Master Now For Example LP

Excellent guitar pop from this Australian band, doubling-up and over their cool debut from a few years back. Having seen them perform a smattering of these tunes a few times on their recent US sojourn, I can definitively note that the various isms relative to that lauded Flying Nun sound — the one they’re most often saddled with — all just chime a wee bit harder in their hands. There’s this real-deal buzz underneath their tunes that makes itself known at well-planned intervals, never allowing things to get too terribly saccharine or to move too far away from their core — relatable, acerbic DIY pop scrappiness, big as some of the hits may be. Assuming you’re on board with the wares of now-time compatriots like PRIMO or TERRY, all aboard here…I find this lot maybe most impressive of the pack.

Motormouth Mabel Knife Trash EP

Not to be confused with Motormouth Maybelle from Hairspray, this EP is three squealing, distortion filled songs. Rapid fire drums punctuating the wild guitar thrash. There is lots of angst and some pleading from the singer. It’s fast and furious and over before you even know what’s happened. So you flip it over and start again. At least that’s what I keep doing. Cool stuff.

Poizon N.W.O.P.H.M. LP

I was just asked what I was listening to and when I replied “Poizon” I got a sideways, raised eyebrow look. I guess that’s the fun of naming your band something this stupid. POIZON is from Houston, TX and features x-members of SUGAR SHACK, WEIRD PARTY, THE SECRET PROSTITUTES, FATAL FLYING GUILLOTINES, etc. The music is very 90s garage-y punk with a heavy bass sound, angular guitars and sing-songy vocals. It’s catchy and driving. Bands don’t seem to play this kind of stuff anymore. The inclusion of a cover of EASY CURE’s “I Want To Be Old” is nice in its execution as well as its sentiment. Well done. The rest of the record is great too.

The Divided World You’re Living In LP

Containing ex-members of BONECRUSHER, Orange County’s the DIVIDED debut plants firmly in anthemic punk, landing somewhere between the rowdy singalongs of classic street punk, and the guitar-driven Loggerheads-era DOA, with rock influences similarly strongly affixed atop a sturdy frame of straightforward punk blasting. Ten tracks that hurl gravel-tinted vocals hollering and crooning over melodic riffs, an anchoring sturdy drum beat, and occasional flourishes—a searing guitar lead and solo, a drop out for some bass soloing, and other small touches that echo the great ’80s/’90s OC sounds of yore. BONECRUSHER’s early recordings remind me a lot of PERSONALITY CRISIS, and the same swagger and unique vocal quirks surface here at points, though this is much more bright and upbeat, and just a really strong punk record with catchy songs that stick with you after the needle lifts. Lyrics are stories told of love and loss, snippets on hard work, toil, and surviving. Legendary punk photographer Ed Colver supplies stage-setting cover photos of chain link fences, empty beer cans, abandoned buildings, and spray painted walls. A great balanced recording makes this a good bet for punks who clamor for songs, melody, and singalong mixed with a little gristle, but the songs are strong enough that there’s a pretty good chance that after a pint or three at their show, anyone would leave with a copy under their arm. Solid!

Mortalis Enemigos EP

This is a really cool record. On the surface Tijuana’s MORTALIS (“Mortal”) play straightforward, chorus-laden Oi!-ish punk with simple mid-tempo rock riffing, but these four tracks have a really strong yet odd recording quality, with slightly buried and distorted vocals, and an off-kilter noisiness that leaves everything slightly off balance. Early hardcore and punk always had these kind of happy accident recordings, where the learn-and-make-up-as-you-go nature of things led to unique recordings that defined the band as much as their music. People seem to copy and mimic them with abundance now, but this somehow feels more organic. There’s also something remarkably just laid back, and mid-gear-throttling-about-the-songs-themselves that gives the record a unique quality. The lyrics are entirely in Spanish with no translation, so it’s a mystery to me, but the artwork of Enemigos (enemies) has Indigenous people disemboweling Conquistadors on the back, so at least some of the message is clear.