V/A More Swiss Cheese, Vol. 3 cassette
Some good old style pop punk from HUNGRY FOR WHAT, KDP, MOTHER’S RUIN, and three other Swiss acts. Enjoyable shit, dudes.
MAXIMUM ROCKNROLL
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Some good old style pop punk from HUNGRY FOR WHAT, KDP, MOTHER’S RUIN, and three other Swiss acts. Enjoyable shit, dudes.
A mega swell comp featuring a slew of hot upcoming Bay Area bands such as STIKKY, FORETHOUGHT, SHORT DOGS GROW, ISOCRACY, and mucho more. Great sound quality, a first class effort. GOOOOO!
A nice mixture of garage punk from APPLE, SCAB, etc., and ranting poetry from Donny the Punk, David Hiberman and more. Pretty enjoyable.
YO LA TENGO, BIG BLACK, and KILSLUG present one track each for pretentious and depressed pseudo-intellectuals, and MOVING TARGETS kill ass as usual in their allotted space. Comes with issue #5 of…
An hour international comp featuring the likes of FALLOUT, 8TH ROUTE ARMY, RUDOLF’s RACHE, and many more!
Interesting title for a varied comp of mostly European acts. Music ranges from ’77-ish stuff to thrash and spacey punk. Relatively enjoyable.
A benefit tape for the Lincoln Park Peace Festival which will occur on August 1 & 2 in Chicago. This consists of 9 Chicago-area punk acts and is an effort well worth supporting.
The Captain musta been drunk when he chose these, because it’s one weird combo of eccentric pop and a dollop of HC to top it off. On the punk side, there’s GOD, WILLARD, CONTINENTAL KIDS, LOODS, and LIP CREAM.
This EP contains one good punk track each from FREEBORN, CRIMINAL SEX, BLOOD AND THUNDER, and NICK TOCZEK (the ranting poet backed by a rocking band). Nice to hear decent stuff from relative unknowns, and…bring back more 7″ers!
I’ve never heard any of these cool, trash 50s bands featured here, but I’m sold on the fact that this is definitely a keeper in the tradition of other great oldies comps like the Back From The Grave samplers. Not so much heavy grunge guitar, but more swaggering, twangy rock’n’roll tunes. Loud, noisy, and fun.
Another international comp from this Swiss label, this being a 90-minute barrage of HC. With such powerhouses as DEPRESSION, GISM, etc, it’s recommended for the thrashers out there!
DRILL, EXIT, 16 TONS, and T.D.F. present eccentric pop, punk, and industrial. Odd record, odd format.
The ZETTLERS, TRAPPERS and RINGO & MAINERS all deliver two songs each of instantly disposable R’n’B and Mersey stuff dating from the mid-’60s.
Professional punk that just barely maintains its roots after all the production and arrangements. Kind of like the Japanese equivalent of the DAMNED. Slightly better tunes appear on the 12″ of “Catholic Day.”
This band has gone totally metal, both musically and in mentality. Lame isn’t good enough to describe this.
Much of this material’s been out in the States before, but this is a good overall sampler for Europeans (or anyone who doesn’t already have their prior releases). Energetic 60s oriented punk.
Rather uninspiring mid-tempo punk without many memorable qualities. Not bad, but it just didn’t keep my attention.
The only thing likable about NY bands aside from SONIC YOUTH or even TEENAGE JESUS/LYDIA LUNCH was that their first few records sounded like this. A clean crunchy grind with raunchy vocals, dirty lyrics, and no noise — just garage-y and trashy psychoticness. Hope they stay this way.
A very enjoyable punk/thrash debut. 5 songs in all, most are catchy and rip as well, featuring inane but creative lyrics. Check it out! A rarity: no pic sleeve!
Yeee…Ouch! Clean, vicious, scorching thrash with shitloads of power and energy. Lyrics cover personal and political sentiments. Buy this tape, you fuddy-duddy!
Stop-on-a-dime thrash and punk with strange quirky hits interspersed. The personal lyrics are pretty “punk”. Tight and hot.
…and pretty soothing vibes these guys are! Distorted melodic stuff here with a relaxing, hypnotizing effect. Very nice. I like this.
Mid-tempo punk with female vocals. While the lyrics are on the mark (anti-racism and anti-state abuse), the music is a bit repetitive. This is not to say it’s limp, but just that the tempo and structures are very similar on all 3 tracks, and given their length, a bit more change might’ve livened it up. Decent.
A novelty here, as Tesco of the MEATMEN indulges in a little punk rock nostalgia. While his covers of the AVENGERS and FLESH EATERS are nothing special, this is the kind of one-off thing I wish there was more of. Credit for persistence goes to Jimmy Johnson for getting this out, a freebie for subscribers of…
A 4-song debut that shows promise. Outside of the occasional wanking guitar leads, I like the mixture of fast and slow hardcore and the straight-ahead attack. Watch for more Orange County releases on this label.
Straightforward HC that’s tight and everything, though there’s little in the way of distinction except on a couple of tracks (like “Gutgekotz”).
A femme Japanese RAMONES trio? They sound like it, and although the tunes all sound a bit familiar, it’s still enjoyable. Catchy stuff.
Short fast angry songs from this Spanish act. Production is a bit muffled, but the energy, power, and emotion is there.
Fun juvenile pop-punk with humorous lyrics slagging the cops, the government, and Ted Night (who does totally suck). Catchy stuff within.
Three-quarters of the old WILLFUL NEGLECT play metal-riff rock on side one, almost too much to take. On the flip, the metallish aspect is still there, but the basic tune is good, as well as the singing. Lyrics aren’t very important here, and the guitar is a pain.
These jokers play a variety of styles with punk energy. Six fun, varied tunes, all with good production and spark.
This postmortem release brings us previously unreleased material from this early Swiss band. Twelve great punk tunes with female vocals of the same caliber as the AVENGERS, BAGS, early SIOUXSIE, etc. Good stuff!
A textured guitar sound fronts the four mid-tempo songs on this EP, which opt for a pop-punkish approach — paradoxically without much in the way of hooks. The slower “Everything Turns Grey” is the best track here, but this band has to eventually decide whether it wants power or melody.
Twelve angry snarling thrash tunes crammed onto one 7″, this one has good sound quality and all of the lyrics in Finnish.
Fast punk and thrash with that grungy garage edge. But on one tune they ask “Who would ever think that a band like us would have all the pussy on a big bus?” Give it up, guys.
This band opts for an atmospheric approach not unlike the more moody UK outfits, with excellent production on both tracks. “Blue Army” has interesting filtered vocals, but the material here does not grip.
A “drinking” band, they must have gone over the edge cuz all the songs are radically different: thrash, Euro-pop, punk, country, and sometimes all of the above together. “Straight Edge Band” is a classic. Hilarious!
Total commercial rock, and the worst thing I’ve heard in a long time.
Jazzy HC with metallish guitar on the A-side, and catchy straight-on HC on the flip. It’s like two different bands, but both sides are done with verve and class.
Six clean-sounding live tunes from this good upcoming band who have a fast melodic sound similar to early 7 SECONDS. Best cut: “Dicks Deli.”
Well, the little skate geeks are back with another dose of U.S. hardcore a la U.K. Fueled on pure root beer, Tommy and company indulge in a few longer tunes this time, including a hilarious scratch song. Why go to L.A. when you can have the VANDALS meets D.I. in the UK?
This Aussie garage psych effort comes with the new German zine Splendid, which exposes new and old bands alike. The two tracks by the STEMS aren’t exactly incredible but should satisfy followers of tough Aussie psych.
I think this is a reissue of the STALIN’s first two 7″ records, as well as the track they put on MRR’s international comp LP. This is nice to have as a collector, although this relatively primitive punk doesn’t hold a candle to their subsequent material, which raged.
This French outfit has a great sound, combining a melodic early pop punk style with dominant guitars and politically oriented lyrics. Reminds me of the music that warped my mind back in my formative years, so check it out.
Speedy hardcore with jazzy/metalish guitar riffs but otherwise straight-ahead thrash. Fans of non-melodic aggression will get into this — no let up, no distinction.
Pop-punk meets surfing sounds in Buffalo? The three tracks are not hokey, musically, but are pretty passe. Lyrically “nothin’”.
A good showing by this West German act. The A side is a catchy mid tempo basher with good lyrics and powerful guitars, while the B side alternates between thrashy and reggae. Hot stuff.
What the SOUP DRAGONS are to the BUZZCOCKS, these guys may be to early SAINTS, with a dash of 60s punk and perhaps Belgium’s KIDS thrown in. Really rockin’ pop punk with great guitar and good snarly voice. We’ll know better after their next release.
Metal punk with more originality than your average speedcore act. Lyrics range from abstract to topical subjects. A fairly impressive showing here.
Only three songs which are a blend of early 60s, ska and late 70s punk. I’d liken them to the SHOP ASSISTANTS or a mellower PRIMITIVES. Very nice job.
