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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!
More of their BUZZCOCKS imitations, though it’s not any more rockin’ on this live recording than their studio material. They do indulge in a cover of “Purple Haze,” which is HENDRIX on white bread.
Two years after the Hayseed Hardcore EP and some lineup changes, the Canadian SONS return. This is a great album of sociopolitical thrash and the lyrics are right on target. And yes, the cover of “Stairway to Heaven” is priceless.
Fast energetic tuneful punk from the Aloha State, reminds me a bit of the FREEZE. Not sure about the lyrics, includes a tune called “Pussywhipped.” Hmmm.
Three straight powerful thrashers and two pounding metalchord numbers with “jugga-jugga” guitars galore. Hot shit…and a great band name, too.
Kicking off with a rad cover of the Sesame Street theme, these guys blaze out some driving melodic punk with buckets of energy present. Rad shit.
These guys claim to be inspired by DRI, but this is mostly mid-tempo metalpunk with so-so lyrics and lotsa guitar tweedling. Yeah, it’s powerful, but they should stop listening to crossover and put on early DRI for some spark.
Terse, speedcore riffing energizes this fast, to-the-point trio of songs. The abrasive vocals are quite good, and the guitar work aims for original reworkings of the basic core figures we’ve come to expect from this genre. Verdict: a top-notch example of the style, though not exactly my cup of tea.
A four-song release, doing very bouncy and catchy 77 punk. Distinguishing features are a really fuzzed guitar and good snarly vocals. Cool.
A hilarious sleeve introduces four HC numbers along fairly predictable lines: mid-to-fast tempo, shouted vocals, messy guitars, mosh intros, and no melody whatsoever. The energy’s cool, but more originality is needed here. From South Africa.
This band’s sound here is rockin’, but their punk sound is pretty muted by smooth production, which limits the power and accents the pop. A bit too polished.
SM-70, hailing from W. Germany, opt for short, fast songs in a messy thrash mode. It’s a style that’s familiar, and you can bet there’s loads of aggro and a pummeling sound from track to track — it’s also, despite its effectiveness, a trifle too common to make a major impression. Still, it’s good.
Blistering innovative metal punk from San Jose. Includes a cover of a cover (“Psycho Chicken”) and I like it.
These New Yorkers sound like New Yorkers — a vicious, angry, aggressive powerful HC assault with “fed up” words. Some metallic bits but not overbearing, just forceful NYHC.
Their sound lurks somewhere near the STOOGES with a dash of early SAINTS to spice it up. Songs do go on and on, but I guess on the right drugs you can hang with it.
For the most part, this is mid-tempo English type punk, though every now and then a bit of thrash creeps in to remind you it’s not 1979. Decent, but not powerful or catchy enough to be really memorable.
RANCID DECAY plays tight, raging speedcore with power and complex structures, while MR. BUNGLE serves a buffet of sounds from reggae to metal to funk, etc., which totally rocks. Cool stuff here.
Here’s another Northern California act you should know about, cuz these jokers blast out a hot punk and thrash sound with honest positive lyrics and a lot of energy. Check this out.
Like their last EP, this one is not manic at all. One punk tune, one pop tune, and a disco tune. Maybe this is wacky in Sweden, but I don’t get it.
Primitive production and an almost terrifying rawness make the highly distorted thrash on this one actually connect in a distinctive way — much in the way that TERVEET KÄDET did it years ago. The more experimental tracks, with lyrics over drums, are less effective, this is one unusual, interesting record. I like it.
After releasing one of the neatest garage singles of last year, “Saw My Name Written on a Tombstone” (included here), the PRIMEVILS went to record this album which showcases both sides of their musical styles. You get some fantastic, catchy instant-garage-classic songs as well as some slower, dirge-y drone songs. Great record.
Some basic garage thrash with socially relevant lyrics here. Punk “musicians” won’t be blown away by the talent and originality, but this is very energetic and fun.
Very calm peace punk sounds, to the point of sounding like the CAPTAIN AND TENNILLE or 7 SECONDS (slight exaggeration, Kevin). A couple of tunes have some verve, but overall this is snooze material. From Scotland.
Full-on, straightforward power chord punk very similar to the RAMONES, who seem to be a big influence. Catchy and driving stuff, so pinheads (and Steve Spinali) should take note. [I did. It’s on my Top 15 — Ed.]
What a pleasant surprise! Instrumentally varied, kick-ass punk with personal lyrics, both tracks camping out in the same area as early material by the LEFT. What’s more, there are hooks, nifty guitar breaks, and more than a little arranging skill. Highly enjoyable, and recommended.
Clean powerful thrash from this new Bay Area band. Can’t comment on the lyrics (none provided) but they do rip, shred, and all that.
Not quite as hard and loud as their other releases but because they’ve shifted their gears a little the sound here is less Detroit-styled rock and more slower, moodier that resembles the best of the FLESH EATERS and the GUN CLUB.
Hey, if you absolutely hate tunes in your music and vocals you can’t understand at all, this album’s for you. Very fast, very metal-influenced, very gruff and very political. Sorta like old DISCHARGE meets every modern speedmetal band.
An anti-Christian rage here, sort of like the first CRASS 7″ but set to a more post-punk mood. Nevertheless, it’s as biting and pointed. Both male and female vocals, nice harmonies on the flipside, though the dance beat on one cut and the “prettiness” on another make them difficult to handle until the guitar and drums kick in.
Pop-punk with good drums and guitars, sappy vocals that detract quite a bit. Add a different vocal track and you’d have the strength of a good JESUS AND MARY CHAIN release.
50s and 60s influences here ranging from rockabilly and R’n’B, but with a 70s rock’n’roll delivery like LITTLE BOB STORY or something. Dated, but it raves.
Rather odd. If songs were sentences, these guys are spitting out fragments because their short electronic bursts come across as unfinished. Not bad, just out of the ordinary.
The best of the lot — the best name and the best music. The “Goat” manages to make a hideous, noisy rumble that can make you hum along. Really weird, very much inspired by the BUTTHOLE SURFERS and the RESIDENTS. They go from harsh and painful to strange and fun but it keeps you listening throughout.
A five pointed star on the front cover, costs ¥666, released June 6 — hey wait! — this must be satanic rock! This is one of those cases when I’m glad I don’t understand Japanese; one side is a god awful drone with some woman screaming, the other side has three tracks in HC, pop-punk, and post-punk styles respectively. Poo poo.
A two song, one-sided flexi that mysteriously appeared in a NEW ROTEEKA EP. Pretty much rock punk, not too exciting folks.
I admit the thought of a RAMONES cover/tribute band sounds like a good idea, but this Australian configuration made up of some bigger bands there like the SAINTS and PAUL KELLY, doesn’t kick as hard as it should — so you end up with a limp shadow of the RAMONES.
Rockin’ pop in an English mode, but made palatable by the guitar predominance and a novel sense of melody. The chorus on “True Blue” is wonderfully catchy, and the other two tracks hold their own with a mid-tempo, bouncy style; an obscure comparison, but the sound is very much like Australia’s KELPIES. Good.
A varied EP with four songs on the pop punk side. Three are pretty decent ’77-pop style, and one is a bit like a folk tune set to a beat. Not exhilarating, but okay.
Sounding like COCKNEY REJECTS to some extent, this band’s second EP delivers 79 UK punk with spirited beat, choruses, and lots of spunk. Above par.
HEIMATLOS delivers in many punk styles, all of which are done with a special “cut above” feel — whether thrash, classic, short or long, they attack. KROMOZOM 4 are also a tight, aggressive unit whose combination of wicked thrash and goofy stuff between tracks gives them a TOY DOLLS feel. Hot record!
God these guys are great. After two 7″s and this, their second album, they’ve moved from blissed-out thrashers into a harder, less definable full bodied sound. Some of the structures here remind me an awful lot like some SST or Touch and Go band like KILLDOZER, SCRATCH ACID or DINOSAUR.
One live side, on studio that is mainly outtakes from their first LP of years ago, as well as a cut with Paula Pandora. These are the San Diegans who went on to be the MORLOCKS, and they do your basic 60s punk stuff, all snarly and ultra-cool. OK music, very sharp cover.
Messy, fast, gruff, loose, riffy HC thrash abounds on this highly energetic EP — it’s really a non-stop, high-velocity assault with gritty instrumentals and raw vocals. It’s also quite distinctive and very, very hot.
Despite their hilarious name, this one is just mid-tempo pop-punk served up with solid guitars and rockish edges in the occasional lead breaks. “Cocky Rock Boys,” with its catchy vocal chorus, is the standout; the other two songs just sit there. Okay, but not mandatory.
Lots more variety than usual on this release. There are some songs reminiscent of the GBH of yore, but they’ve slowed down their thrash on others, added a lot more melody, and even have a couple of non-thrash tunes. Can’t say if it makes for a better overall record, but they’re at least opening up.
Pretty good garage-y punk but what rules here are the straightforward thoughtful lyrics which conquer war, religion, homophobia, and more. Good sentiments.
Produced by Giorgio Gomelsky (of YARDBIRDS fame), and “produced” it is. Horns, lots of very laid back instrumentation that serves as a backdrop for Stephan’s ravings, as well as lots of musical styles running into each other, lurching into punk and back out. I think too much of the power is sacrificed in the name of variety, but other’s less influenced by stylistic purity might buy it.
77 style punk that only on two or three songs rises into a musically inspiring pitch. Lyrically caustic appraisals of both world politics and poser-punk problems. With a bit more cutting loose, this would make a real dent.
You gotta hand it to Wattie and co., they do keep the faith. Same old hooks, still pissed-off political lyrics, and still driving punk tunes. Lotsa thrash, some pretty repetitive, but they continue to add some variety as they have over the last several releases. On the other hand, he’s gotta keep doing this — I mean, can you imagine Wattie with a skate punk look?
Rockabilly meets the RAMONES, meaning ultra-fast rockabilly with powerful as hell drive and retardo lyrics. Fast as thrash, raging stuff that only a corpse like Elvis himself couldn’t get caught up in. Hot platter!
This live at CBGB’s album will appeal to MISFITS fans, fans of melodic punk, and malevolent folks everywhere. Non-stop power, lots of tunes, and sarcasm galore. VERBAL ABUSE, move over.
