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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. We reserve the right to reject releases on the basis of content. Music without vocals or drums will not be considered. All music submitted for review must have been released (or reissued) within the last two years. Please include contact information and let us know where your band is from!
Art punk stuff from Texas via Chicago. This combo is fronted by an ex-NO EMPATHY member from the 80’s Chicago scene. Kind of spastic without getting too out there. A mix of a Mike Watt band, PERE UBU, and ARCHERS OF LOAF. I’m digging this release from Johann’s Face Records who had a pretty good run in the ’90s.
Warsaw’s GOVERNMENT FLU has been around long enough to still have a page limping on Myspace (!), and a lengthy catalog of solid, straight-ahead, early-’80s US-influenced hardcore. This five-song EP (their ninth!) spins like one of the best early No Way Records releases (DIRECT CONTROL, GOVERNMENT WARNING, etc.) where there’s no bullshit, no metal or art trappings, just concise, direct hardcore that maybe trawls the FANG/”end-of-the-LP-side” ’80s punk sludge here and there to bookend the speeding attack. Energetic jolts of fast hardcore more precisely played than ’80s bands in a more defined recording, the No Way comparison is apt, and the EP’s artistic design, with a big fold-out poster/lyrics sheet harkens to that great spirit and style of HC revival of the mid-’00s, but urgency and intensity overrides any retro nostalgia. Lyrics are shouted in English, confronting decisions of how to live life, self-definition, expectation and rules. Great EP, limited to 500 copies.
As soon as the music began I immediately thought of the first POST REGIMENT album, a record I’ve listened to maybe more than any other throughout my life, or at least in the top five. Turns out that the two recordings were done at the same studio with the same engineer within a year of each other, so I’d like to take a moment to appreciate and commend my damaged but accurate and still-functioning ears. ID fits right in between exemplary Polish bands POST REGIMENT and ARMIA, really sharing the spirit and rhythmic prowess of both bands, but perhaps more stripped down. This record doesn’t immediately grip me the way the bands I compared it to did, but Polish punks surely know better than me, a Texas-born poser who loves old Polish punk and hardcore. This was previously released on cassette only back in 1993, so now we can all enjoy it on the same superior format as its aforementioned contemporaries.
INSECURITY from France plays totally fine and serviceable aggressive youth crew, nothing to write home about but not terrible. They’re named after one of the best TURNING POINT songs and the influence is evident, but if you have even a passing interest in youth crew, you already have a record that sounds exactly like this. If someone is holding a gun to your head and demanding that you buy a Refuse Records release, I’d definitely recommend this over most. Wouldn’t that be a weird situation in which to find yourself?
On my first pass through, I didn’t love or hate this. Jessa Graves sings in this style that’s, like, quiet-loud. She sort of whispers into a rise and shout and then lets it trail off at the end of each line. Even in some words her vocal volume wavers between a tipsy friend trying to tell you a secret and a sober one telling you it’s time to fucking go! But also she has this piercing sweetness and clarity to her voice with tons of power behind it. She also plays guitar in this band and I have to say, that opening riff on the B-side (bass as well) is real good. I’m pretty drawn to the song “Leap Year.” It’s more than the lyrics “Did you forget that all along / That I was just your ghost?” that make this song feel super haunted. And Graves is certainly a proficient writer. All these songs are quite wordy, but nothing feels extra or out of place. Engineered and mixed by Stan Wright of ARCTIC FLOWERS, which is pretty rad. To be candid, these songs didn’t grab me at first blush, but two or three spins through they’re starting to get stuck in my head. The cover art for this is an X-ray of her chest cavity and it came with a handwritten note saying she’s just getting started. I love this energy and what I’m hearing from this group.
Present-day reinterpretations of ’80s dark wave/synth rarely sound as perfect as Июльские Дни. Synths are heavy and omnipresent but never overbearing, vocal delivery is stark and cold, demanding and earning attention, while guitar melodies ripped from Top of the Pops soar the band to new heights. Everything is held together with a rock-solid rhythm section, creating a feel that’s suited to the darkest corner of the dancefloor as to an ’80s movie montage. They are reaching confidently for a sound…and they succeed.
Haircut youth crew that, while energetic, tight, and probably great live under exactly the right circumstances, has absolutely nothing to offer on record. The songwriting isn’t quite as cliché and predictable as the embarrassing lyrics and artwork might have one think, but the songs aren’t memorable either. And I know I’m writing this about a straightedge band, but if you are a middle-aged adult in the year 2020 with a Christian-teenager-level understanding of addiction and substance (ab)use, as demonstrated in the title track’s cartoon sloganeering, you desperately need to expand your worldview.
Not as crushing as I’d hoped it to be. With six tracks it’s definitely got variety but it’s about two-thirds Burning Spirits-styled metallic rocking and about one-third hardcore. The hardcore tracks follow DISCHARGE-like song progressions while the songwriting is still fairly creative. The sound quality is dirty enough to feel true menace and power, which thankfully is not lost in too slick of a production. It’s pretty entertaining and warrants multiple listens but I’d imagine the live show is more enthralling.
NABAT is true Bolognese. Their music is thick and meaty while still glistening into a uniformed consistency. It’s hearty and warm and like most other things it’s been bastardized and ruined by Americans. If you’re not familiar with NABAT they’ve got a hefty Oi sound all their own with a mix of speedy UK82-inspired tunes and uniformed mid-tempo stuff, big woah-oh choruses and very gruff vocals. This isn’t a full reissue of all the band’s material, just their studio recordings, as some compilation songs, along with “Kill Police” and “Nichilist Nabat” which appeared on the split tape with RIP OFF, are missing. The roughness of the recordings becomes glaringly obvious moving from the smoothness of the Laida Bologna 7″ to the RIP OFF split tape recordings. Puke N Vomit tried but this reissue comes across like Sunday Sauce (half-assed and lackadaisical but ultimately pleasing to the many who buy a new pair of boots instead of performing upkeep on their flagship store Docs Martens). It’s not the highest quality but if you want to hear NABAT then this will cover you.
This French band has an early LEATHERFACE feel. Although not nearly on that level, this is some decent gruffy vocals punk with lyrics in English. Maybe a little RANCID in the mix, too. An eight-song release of melodic guitar punk.
The first thing I did after putting this record on was to turn it up. The second thing I did was turn it waaay up. This band rips. Reminds me an awful lot of NO WEATHER TALKS. Maybe because both have female singers and are from Germany? Could be that there’s just something about the German accent singing in English, which I am so grateful for because I also love what their songs are about. Right out the gate they’re denouncing sexual harassment in the song “Time’s Up.” There’s a line in that song that goes “A piece of cake? / Well I can’t bake / Give me a new recipe for equality,” and I just fucking love it. All these songs are full of high-energy, wailing vocals and jangly guitar. The lyrics for their song “Pizza Girl” is just as cheesy as you might imagine, but god damn is it catchy and dancey. Even though the track “Friends Like These” starts out with a kinda standard blues riff that tends to bore me, by the first chorus I am all in. This band rules. I’m bummed that this is the first I’ve heard of them, especially since I could have seen them at the past two Fests in Gainesville, but I’m glad I’m on board now! Oh, and it’s mastered by Dave Williams at Eight Floors Above. That guy is a great indicator for whether an album is gonna be good. This whole record rips.
Experimental and/or improvisational free jazz (?) steeped in punk ethos and sonics. A vast expanse of sound, feedback and electronics shrouding erratic drums while guitar and wind trade compete for melodies. The middle of “Jonah” approaches PAINKILLER-level heaviness and ominousity before departing on another leg of their journey through sound—a journey that ends with a raucous, almost six-minute stomp titled “Funeral Rite.” That track (and the release) descends more than it ends, a surprisingly gentle landing that reminds you just how far off the ground OOLOI took you.
This rips! A kinetic sonic assault of chiming, static-buzz guitar is the vehicle for seven songs of desperate melancholy. Opener “Death” kicks things off like a cross between AGENT ORANGE and GEISHA GIRLS. The album continues with a rain-soaked Pacific Northwest take on dysfunctional OC life; surf-dork beach punks thrashing it out in the garage of a Huntington Beach tract home. On the closing track, “Final Solution,” OBSESSIONS assume their final form, channeling JAY REATARD channeling the ADVERTS on a hissy and warped C60 cassette. Highly recommended. Vinyl limited to 100 copies so move fast.
A tidy little pop punk rager from North Carolina’s Ben Carr. It was recorded by Jeff Burke of RADIOACTIVITY and MARKED MEN, which should give you some pointers as to the sound, and the music hums along with a similar propulsion, but there’s something snottier and less romantic about PERSONALITY CULT’s songs. Layer upon layer of immediately memorable hooks and melodies draw on elements of BUZZCOCKS at times, and SCREECHING WEASEL at others. Fans of any of the bands mentioned are advised to have a listen.
This Berlin gruppe is all over the map on this album. From minimalist synth punk to straight-ahead angry anarcho-punk; from the extremes of near powerviolence-level thrash (as demonstrated on “Angehem Straff”) to the doo-wop COUNTRY TEASERS/FAT WHITE FAMILY disturbed pop dirge of “Zu Viel Speed.” The amazing thing is, it all works! For all the disparate styles, the album retains a consistently wry yet bleak outlook throughout. It’s rare for cold detachment to possess this much personality.
Drug-induced garage and/or bedroom rock brilliance from Ohio’s VOIDBOYS, fronted alternately by Ricky Hell and/or Ricky Hamilton (who are most assuredly not the same people…unless they are). Why is the lead instrument in “I Luv It” a clarinet? This is just one of the (many) questions that you will have after listening to this banger—but mostly you’ll be asking “where can I get more?” Several of these tracks are from the Killed By Ricky tape that most of us will never own, an indescribable collision of dream pop and infectious two-chord punk and a laser-sharp focus on a good hook. CHROME meets ROKY ERICKSON meets the SPITS. There, I said it.
The e-blurb from the label pretty much sums it up: “Region rock is alive and well in 2019.” Chattanooga supergroup drops their third full-ength cassette in as many years—infectious rough/melodic vocals, ultra produced and perfectly dirty wall of guitars, and more hooks than any self-respecting punk would know what to do with. If you know where they come from, then you likely already know the band. And if you like where they come from (SEXY, ADD/C, THIS BIKE IS A PIPE BOMB, FUTURE VIRGINS) then it shouldn’t surprise you when I recommend this release. I know their legacy is formidable already, but their craft is becoming dangerously refined…which is bad news for exactly no one.
This San Diego band cranks out the 1979-1984 UK-style punk. Think GBH, the two-string riffing of CHELSEA, and EXPLOITED. This is a pretty solid release song wise from this trio. Thirteen tracks on this debut full-length. Good stuff for Brit punk types.
Melodic hardcore from New York. I was thinking these guys have a DC thing going on in a SHUDDER TO THINK kind of way. Then a cover of the 3 classic “Swann Street” comes up. Pretty cool. But there is also a metal-ish ANGELIC UPSTARTS feel on a few of the songs. Seven tracks on this which actually came out in 2018 while their first full-length came out in 2015. So it is what it is in 2020. Decent.
Colossal hardcore from Manila—their debut EP was an absolute killer, but last year’s follow-up will leave you on the damn floor. VEILS hold weapons in their arsenal to level listeners with speed and power, but it’s the restraint that make them stand out—like a more nuanced INTEGRITY, they offer their tonnage with an inward intensity before unloading. “Svvarm” is the perfect example, an intro followed by a drum roll that only hints at the blasts, breakouts and breakdowns that are going to fill the next three minutes. Dangie’s vocals are gruff and dripping with fury, pushed to their absolute limit like the band themselves while the guitars fill every bit of space on the record, dominating in their very presence. Intentional and honest brutality that sounds (and feels) very very fucking real—an excellent record.
VU is the greatest rock’n’roll band of all time and I cherish even their most unconventional boots like Screen Test or A Symphony of Sound but this is pretty f’n boring. Billed as a pre-first-LP rehearsal broadcast on the radio in NYC, this blatant cash-in presents a fly-on-the-wall snapshot of a shockingly sedated (not in the good way), meandering practice session. Who’d have thought Lou halfheartedly strumming his guitar for the better part of an hour would be so boring? Apparently not me since I bought it without a second thought. Oh well. Partially redeemed by a few live tracks from an actual show on side four.
Incredibly boring and generic mid-paced straight edge hardcore from CzÄ™stochowa, Poland. It’s putting me to sleep as I type this. This band makes INSTED sound like INFEST. Youth crew muzak. Bad bad bad. Noteworthy: former MRR contributor Rebecca Solnit (who penned issue 31’s cover story “War Against Women” in 1986) is quoted on the insert.
This is an absolute treasure! By 1988, Polish zine/label QQRYQ had created strong bonds with like-minded punks around the Eastern Bloc and compiled a tape with bands from GDR, Hungary and Poland. Stories of dedicated punks in this repressive state and time are always humbling and inspiring, and there are a few great ones in this package. Two booklets are included, one is a reproduction of the first (?) punk zine from the GDR, which had to be printed in Warsaw and then smuggled across the East German border either in a stinky beer-soaked backpack, or sewed into a giant teddy bear—there are two partially conflicting accounts. Either way, the Stasi inserted a spy into the punk community and managed to seize the zines before distribution! Needless to say, it’s ten beautiful typewritten and collaged pages covering DDR and Polish punk. The other booklet is focused more on the original tape of this release, with original layout reprinted nice and big and with added photos and retrospectives on the relevant scenes and projects. And of course there’s the music! The two opening tracks from ANDREA’S AUSLAF (GDR) are noisy, but awesome, but had me wondering if this would be another LP’s worth of hardly listenable live boombox recordings. Not the case! Quality varies but overall is enjoyable lo-fi, raw and passionate punk and hardcore from TRYBUNA BRUDU, DIE TROTTEL, KEIN TALENT + NAMENLOS, DEZERTER, BIZTONSÁGI TANÁCS, WARTBURGS FÜR WALTER, and closing with possibly the most ripping track by Poland’s A.P.S.F. If you are the least bit interested in punk behind the Iron Curtain, or even cool old punk ephemera of any kind, this LP is an absolute must.
This latest volume of Rust Belt scrap punk offloads fifteen tunes from the likes of the FURR, CLIBBUS, and TRACI AND THE FAUCET OF FUKS. While of course this ain’t an archival collection of lost obscurities, the ugly, trashy or just plain oddball cuts capture the KBD vibe regardless. Overall solid, and the excellent FACILITY MEN and DBOY contributions in particular make this worth checking out.
This North Carolina outfit pops up sporadically, but they seem to leave a pretty nasty mark when they do. Oppressive old school grind brutality that imposes itself upon the ears. Seven cuts, and not a relaxing moment to be found. Choice cut: “Underbelly.”
CIRCLE ONE is a band of some notoriety and has taken on the veneer of myth in these many years since the tragic demise of their singer. Formed in the very earliest days of the hardcore scene, they were one of the first bands to see the way forward into the ’80s being blazed by the GERMS and BLACK FLAG. The immediately emerged at the hardest and most aggressive vanguard of the emerging hardcore scene. This LP compiles their two early demos and some comp tracks. Most of us know CIRCLE ONE from the Patterns of Force LP, and the great thing about this LP is that none of these songs are on Patterns of Force. That is to say, by the time the band recorded the LP they had already discarded all these demo tracks and moved on. Some of them we know from comps, but there is a lot of material on here that is probably only known by tape traders until now. Let’s be clear—these are demos, not all the tracks are great, and you can see they were working to tighten up and develop the sound that would emerge on Patterns of Force. Indeed, listening to the progression from 1980 to 1981 to 1983, we hear the punk influences shed for a more purely hardcore sound, and the guitar tone gradually get thicker and beefier. While this isn’t on par with Patterns of Force, it’s certainly a great slice of Southern California hardcore punk history and there are some standout tracks here.
New Jersey is a pretty interesting place. Listening to CYANAMID, you’d think it was literally just a gigantic six-lane highway allowing you to look at perpetually closed strip malls, Superfund sites and trash-filled streets. These kids sounded like they would’ve been throwing bricks and hatchets at Springsteen’s ’69 Chevy with the 396 as it raced by. Lines are to be drawn north to the GROINOIDS and SIEGE, south to TEDDY AND THE FRAT GIRLS and west to Crucifucks, Scratch Acid and Flipper CRUCIFUCKS, SCRATCH ACID and FLIPPER. I can’t imagine PSYCHO SIN could’ve existed without this band. Absolutely fucked up anti-hardcore. The accompanying booklet is pretty baller as well. The problem is that flipping this from A to B feels like you’re hearing the same shit and that doesn’t even take the bonus CD with live material from three different shows with similar set lists into account. An amazing collection that is not for the weak of heart.
Hard-driving NZ rock with serious and generous (or seriously generous?) Aussie overtones. After a long drive down a dusty road, when you walk into the only bar you can find just as the sun is setting…this is the band playing. This is walking out of solitude and into a wall of beer and humanity. DATELESS are raw, primal….DATELESS sound like rock’n’roll.
DEAD BARS make pub punk with nostalgia for a time when you could still smoke inside and get a PBR for $1.25. Every song is handcrafted to be sung with a choir of people you only know from inside that bar. “Rain” opens with an exhilarating guitar shriek and provides some of the most enjoyably ugly string work on the record. “I’m a Regular” is probably the best example of the lyrical and vocal strengths available on the album. Finally, “You Never Left” closes the album and hangs around for a long time to once again illustrate just how solid the musicianship, both instrumentally and vocally, was on the ten preceding tracks. This is punk rock and roll that allows itself to be as fun as it is sincere. It’s probably safe to expect this crew to become road dogs and play near you soon and then again four months later.
Slick, big production Oi! from the Emerald City. I’d heard their Hold Fast single previously and if that got your sta-prest hard then you’ll cream all over this one. Catchy and upbeat to the point of nausea. If you like your street rock in the vein of the OLD FIRM CASUALS with a hint of STIFF LITTLE FINGERS and a little leprechaun dancing thrown in, then it’s almost payday. What are you waiting for?
Let There Be Noise is a hard-to-find album of cut and bloody backstreet rock’n’roll from a sleepy town in Australia in ’81. The STOOGES, IGGY and British imports infected the minds of youth. I can see it now; sheep farmers rolling around in smashed beer bottles, cigarettes hanging from their lips, spitting as a new hobby, etc. “True Friend” comes off just like “I Wanna Be Your Dog” and I get heavily reminded of the stupid simplicity of COCKNEY REJECTS and SLAUGHTER AND THE DOGS throughout. In the Red does a handsome job with some retrospective writing and improved art. All trendy assholes with DJ nights should buy it and play it so all those violent skinheads on a rampage can bop around and have some fun.
ALEX CUERVO’s “Everybody Disappear” is one of my favorite songs of all time. Since I have listened to it innumerable times, it was odd to hear it starting off this album. Not that it is a surprise since CUERVO is in EERIE FAMILY along with Alyse Mervosh—both also of the HEX DISPENSERS. This version of the song is different from the original, but a great song is great in any incarnation. It’s moody and slow, but unlike the other songs on this LP has an upbeat lyrical tone. The label calls EERIE FAMILY “gloom pop” which sounds just about right. The music brings me back to the late ’80s when the English goth rock bands decided they wanted to be cowboys. It’s keyboards and drums with a sparse, expansive sound. The vocals are lethargic and sullen. Perfect for a rainy, chilly winter day spent brooding in the house. Great record.
Side A has a ’70s glammy, high-energy vibe. With a name like “High Heel Roller Skates” I would expect nothing less. I don’t know what a high heel roller skate actually looks like, but I imagine this is what one’s theme song would sound like. The B-side goes for a more ’70s butt rock sound. It is also high-energy and includes a prog-ish extended guitar solo. ENCHANTERS features Classy Craig of the LEATHER UPPERS so the retro style is in full swing. Fun record.
Art/noise manifested as hardcore punk. I feel like Budapest’s ÉSZLELÉS are taking modern-day squirmy punk and giving it a KILLDOZER/FUGS makeover…with horns, and with lots of drugs. A swinging good time, to be sure, and these kids are making punk sound very fukkn weird again.
This upbeat synthesizer dance party from Barcelona features so many artificial handclaps that, at a certain point, I began to find it hard to differentiate between the claps and the snare. It began to drive me mad right before I blacked out from the electronically induced confusion. Upon waking, the echoing, haunted vocals then gave me hallucinations like I was seeing a new planet for the first time. Luckily, the beeps and boops from the keys provided the perfect new planet, sci-fi soundtrack. This is atmospheric and gothy background music. It’s got moments of punk inspiration, but it’s never particularly intrusive. “Until” is particularly pulsing and spooky. “Espacio Profundo” has a fill-the-room, heavier sound.
I was afraid I would fail trying to tell the history of GESS, but the insert helps me out. They formed in ’83 when they were 15 years old and this record—which is their demo tape—came out a year later. Not until ’86 did members from CONFUSE and SIEG HEIL join. If you are into this sort of history, go get General Speech and More Noize zines and get educated and laugh on my ignorance. Anyway, this release is the first vinyl edition of the demo tape of the band that is pure noise-core madness. Guitars are distorted into one annoying line of noise, and within this chaotic thread of buzz I found all the beauty of the world; the bass is interpretable and dynamic compared to some of their successors where it is just dumb (but great) poking. The beat is constantly pumping although the endless noise, introducing a sort of monotony that prevents you from catching a heart attack. Makes me wonder if it is the beat that is monotonous or the guitar, though I focus on the guitar; the whole band is all over the place and it feels as if it is spinning around in a museum. Synthesizing what’s going on here would result in rudimental punk songs performed with enthusiasm, but the point is that you should synthesize my ass! GESS is great because 15-year-old kids in Japan thought that they would make the noisiest music that sounds as my grandma would imagine hell—the singer does sound like a possessed person—and how they heard DISCHARGE and possibly DISORDER in their head. What’s even better is that decades later whole record labels, festivals, genres, lives are spent on hailing this radically pioneer approach that sadly has become a strict establishment that is rarely renewed despite the liberating idea of the brave approach of creating a unique sound. Beside the Suffer Damage tape on side A, there is a live recording on side B and props to then-current technology that both recording sound the same. A CD is also included with two gigs from the Violent Party Gigs series, but I have no idea where to put that in. The vinyl plays great both on 33 1â„3 and 45 rpm. The review is based on both paces.
You might pass over this one at your neighborhood shoppe by simply judging it for the unspectacular “spooky punk” band name and album cover. You might even slap it on and yawn at the prospect of yet another bunch of MISFITS-worshiping goons. Those in the know, though, (read: nerds) will recognize one vintage ’80s black-clad Cape Cod unit once championed by former shitworker Brian “Pushead” Schroeder on his label comps and personal volume of the Thrasher Skate Rock series. A little digging around Discogs will inform you, the eager consumer, that this album was to be released way back yore before Pushead folded his label and only megabucks test presses existed…until now! That being said, this record is pretty decent and not simply a MISFITS wannabe but also throws post-punk, goth, skate rock and metal into the pot. Equal parts SOCIAL DISTORTION and MOURNING NOISE as well as SAMHAIN and the JONESES. You get “Devilock”-style thrashers like “House of Mirrors,” headbanging anthems like “Cemetary Seniors,” and sing-alongs like the title track that will keep you whoa-whoa-whoaing into the midnight hours. Not worth the megabucks but it’s a good time for sure like bad kids in the cemetery, cheap beer and a little headstone tipping.
Oakland-based arty post-punk in the early Rough Trade tradition, less angular and jagged than wobbly and fuzzed-out, like a second- or third-generation dubbed tape of RAINCOATS and SWELL MAPS singles left out in the sun for a little too long. The minimal percussion is based around a drum pad with that authentically ’80s UK DIY banging-on-found-objects sound, and the bass has the perfect amount of rubber-band snap, but guitarist Jen Weisburg’s unassuming vocals are the secret weapon here, treated with little more than some slight echo or delay to give an otherworldly edge to the off-kilter pop hooks in songs like “Stand in Your Way” or “Climbing Up”—GRASS WIDOW would be an obvious frame of reference, even without knowing that Weisburg and drummer Brian Tester both collaborated with Lillian Maring for her killer (and similarly-minded) post-GRASS WIDOW project RUBY PINS. Killer tape, and simultaneously retro/futuristic, like sounds that have been beamed from an alternate galaxy years ago and are only now reaching the Earth.
Raunchy garage punk giving a nod to slasher flicks on this five-songer released last year. I can’t place the warbly tenor in the vocals, but there’s a rockabilly reference that I couldn’t shake (or identify) throughout my listen. A different tweak on the recording and some serious songwriting chops would start to shine, but I appreciate that KIDS BORN WRONG seem content (or determined) to stick to a horror punk delivery.
After a 7″, here’s a full 30 minutes of this “Totalitarian” D-beat band from Macedonia—”Totalitarian” in that it is in the mold of TOTALITÄR, not that it advocates a one-party dictatorship. The point of departure is, of course, TOTALITÄR, but this is no slavish clone. The guitar sound is a bit thicker and more metallic and there’s enough variety of influence here to allow this record to stand on its own. That said, the majority of the tracks are solidly in the realm of TOTALITÄR-style kÁ¥ng. My impression is that the creator of this comes a bit more from a metal background than hardcore punk, as the whole production has a crunch and heft and underlying subtext points more towards metal than, say, UK82 or ’77 punk. And noticeably absent is the kind of punk stomper TOTALITÄR would throw in on their releases. A few tracks have a bit of Motörcrust vibe as well, but all of these factors complement rather than distract from the overall impact. My only critique is the overuse of of SS as a suffix for a hardcore band name.
NYLEX’s 2018 cassette totally lit up the PYLON cortex in my brain, melding the latter’s tightly-wound and danceable tension with some goth-leaning smudged-eyeliner melancholy. Most of the songs from that tape have been reworked for Plastic for People, now polished to a flawless black patent leather sheen alongside a handful of new tracks that further play up the band’s shadowy melodies and early 4AD-level drama. The vocals are powerful and commanding in a way that probably invites more than a few SIOUXSIE comparisons, shifting from subtle whispers to stern narrations over driving, propulsive bass and razor-edged guitar, but with enough nuance to elevate NYLEX above the typical dark-punk-by-numbers approach that makes so many modern BANSHEES disciples seem like tired exercises in ’80s cosplay. That said, for me, the LP’s strongest moments are still when NYLEX really dig into those driving, claustrophobic PYLON-descended rhythms—that trifecta of deadpan lyrical incantations, needling, single-note guitar and repetitive bass/drum patterns in “Fascinate” is pretty tough to beat.
Take DYSTOPIA’s misery dirges, mix with some of HIS HERO IS GONE’s pitch-black crust and throw in a bunch of TERRORIZER blasting and you’ll get the idea of what this Arizonian band is trying to tell you—that everything’s fucked and we’re all going to die in a grave that we dug. I don’t know about you but that’s a message I can get behind. If you’re a fan of dark crust from the mid to late ’90s then check this out.
As good as this whole thing is, the mid-paced sinister trudge of “Spithead” is pure gold. Vocal snarls hold the spotlight throughout, while erratic beats challenge your ability to squirm and discordant guitars only increase the tension. Only four cuts here, but there are enough feels to last a couple of full-length platters—demanding and destructive hardcore punk from Scotland. And seriously…”Spithead” is unbelievable.
Not to be confused with the excellent Portland band, these Gainesvillers play speedy tongue-in-cheek punk in the style of the LUNACHICKS or BUTT TRUMPET. Maybe I’m tripping on that, but from their pics, they definitely know how to play dress-up and put on a show. Songs ranging in topic from indiscriminate sexual liaisons to gentrification to getting hassled by the man. Not overly politically correct but not dumb as nails either. Play it for your kids.
An internet search of the meaning of “pre-cog” brings up some differing things. Due to the cover art drawings of brains I am going to assume they’re going with the psychic meaning. However, the song titles “Athermic Man,” “On The Run” and the title track don’t give me much of a clue as to what they are predicting. PRE/COG IN THE BUNKER is a two-piece playing rudimentary garage punk. It is all jagged guitar strumming and pounded drums until “On the Run,” the VELVET UNDERGROUND-sounding rave up at the end of side B. The vocals are somewhat sinister in a hard rock-ish way. An interesting juxtaposition that will hopefully become more smoothly integrated in future releases.
Pretty interesting garage/psych/rock/punk band from Bergen, Norway. Treading the preverbal tightrope between the sleazy underground and higher aspirations, they fall a little too far in the middle for my taste. A worthwhile listen, though, as they walk through musical territory once covered by the HIVES and the LEATHER NUN with plenty of Euro ’60s pop sensibilities thrown in…but still a little safe for these ears.
Rehearsal recording from a Peruvian band, playing post-punk that is delinquent, fragile in the best possible meaning. Four songs balancing on the sharp edge of melancholy and beauty, reminisces me of depressed Sunday afternoons that I spent in the piss-like yellow light of the setting sun in rotting post-Soviet buildings. It is that sort of post-punk where the band takes punk towards its establishment; the music starts to wobble and everything gets interesting. SALÓN DADÁ’s energy is between the sharp leads of their exploring guitar and the low-key singing that, due to the recording quality, feels sometime as whispers. The sound is dragged through and it’s hard to decide whether to dance to it or start chain smoking. I wish the sound quality was better, while I appreciate that music makes me wish, so I can relate to their struggle—listening to songs that should have been made into a proper recording so they could be played at dance nights for misfits, and now it only lives in my imagination, therefore it feels personal. I wonder if a rehearsal tape of a Peruvian punk band recorded in ’86 is praised in 2020 then what is not possible? Go start a band!
This compilation of this Aussie band’s earlier cassette releases is DEVO-worship with more of a rusted-out electronics flair. While it sometimes comes off like a cuddly version of MINISTRY, it just as often feels like the POLYSICS got into PCP. The first half of this release will take the listener to a weirdo punk show in a basement space, and the second half leans heavy into a gothy dance party on a sunny day under a dingy overpass. “Terrorvision” is a solid punk jam, despite being long for this album at just over 2 minutes and 30 seconds. “Data Lost…” is the soundtrack to depressed robots taking over your planet and way of life. Wrap your favorite body parts in tin foil, dye your eyebrows blue, and get ready to sweat out chemicals when you listen to this one.
This is from the era when everyone discovered powerviolence and completely lost their shit. Sugar Rush is very much of the time but it blows a lot of stuff out of the water with intensity and great musicianship. The focus is power through speed and the obliteration of everything. SWEET TOOTH’s speed was powerviolence-y but avoided the tough-guy attitude and when they slowed down it just allowed for hard-hitting mosh parts. It’s just an Adderall laser focus on destruction and pure fucking stupidity. I wish I got to experience it live. Also includes a hilarious retrospective booklet.
This one is reeeaaalll good, y’all. UK femme punk trio with an inimitable but instantly familiarly awkward stomp with roots reaching for sharp anarcho/post-punk and early Polish hardcore (seriously, “Shapeshifter” after the intro could be a lost track from the Fala comp). A swarm of downstroke guitars are the focus, even as vocals stab through the mix with sharp, urgent bursts. TERRA SOROR might land in the sonic void between dark DIY rehashes and early-’80s UK independence, but what they are really doing is creating their own space, and I hope they continue to fill that space with more sound, because this is absolutely fantastic.
