Angry Johnny and the Snots Angry Johnny and the Snots cassette
These guys are as punk as their name! They play basic powerful slow-to-fast punk with angry vocals and hateful lyrics.
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These guys are as punk as their name! They play basic powerful slow-to-fast punk with angry vocals and hateful lyrics.
Shitty adolescent cover, great shitty rough production, and this six song “best of” 7″ is probably already rare. If you can’t get it — don’t sweat it — he’s got a tape coming out on ROIR as well as a full LP on Homestead soon. Jesus…
Okay, okay, so dumb lyrics aren’t just limited to the USA. Actually, less than half the tunes here have gore-related subject matter, while the rest are introspective and brooding, not so lame at all. Musically, mostly speedy thrash, but more musical than speedcore, as well as some slower tunes.
Recorded 3-½ years ago, I’m surprised this LP finally saw the light of day. If it had come out back then, the YOUNG LIONS would have been seen as the forerunners of today’s “HC gone eclectic” bands. One side maintains the HC edge while indulging in rock, metal, and other slight influences — powerful sound. The other side sounds like another band entirely — pop, country, etc. Good lyrics throughout, but schizo as hell.
DRI-ish thrash with a slight shade of personality. They’re competent and possess good lyrics, but need to develop their own style.
Punk attitude/lyrics meet post-punk almost wave music. Assets: great female vocals, sometimes haunting moods which remind me of several recent UK femme-vocal bands. Drawbacks: doesn’t quite pack the punch of their live set. Comes with free 70’s Top 40 schlock 7″.
All from Spain, most of the bands here favor a psychotic thrash sound, although a healthy dose of ska/reggae appears. Hottest tracks are from B.A.P., ANTI-DOGMATIKSS, and SUBTERRANEAN KIDS. Good job.
A metalcore sampler, featuring ANNIHILATED, CIVILIZED SOCIETY?, LORD CRUCIFIER, and DESECRATORS. Unless you’re really into speed metal, this is pretty hard to take, with guitar wanking all over the fucking place. Only CIVILISED SOCIETY?’s cut is listenable, but a better version appears on their LP. Some good lyrics, and a collective effort.
A good sampling of West German bands (CERESIT, CIRCLE OF SIGTIU, etc.), a few U.S. bands (SEIZURE, BURNT, etc.), and more. This is mostly forceful stuff, so pick this up.
Thrash or die, indeed! DEPRESSION, GASH, PERDITION, and five more Aussie acts blast out some rad shit, all with pretty good production. Booklet enclosed. Cool.
A 14-song, 8 band punk/hardcore comp tape from the Philippines. Some notable material from BETRAYED, PHILIPPINE VIOLATORS, and COLLISION to name a few. Nice package, lyrics, and band info included.
A comp from the garage, featuring punky and thrashed out noises from STATE OF CONFUSION, BORN WITHOUT A FACE, S.N.O.T., and more. Some good stuff here.
A solid Filipino comp with hot cuts by the BETRAYED, WUDS, and PUBLIC SCANDAL. Mostly punk, but a couple rockabilly tracks are thrown in.
Contains many “big” European acts like INFERNO, RATTUS, WRETCHED, INSTIGATORS, etc., plus smaller acts scattered around the globe. Lots of good stuff here.
This on-going chronicle of unknowns swings to Sweden, 1964-67. Most of the tracks are Mersey, Mod, or R’n’B, with the hottest coming from the PALMES, HEP STARS, and TAGES. This volume, unlike the others, contains many live tracks, some of which aren’t the hottest sound quality.
Ahhh, some diversity — 14 bands, 24 songs, from Spain to the USA and over to Japan. Styles ranging from ska inspired pop-punk to speedy hardcore mix this international sampler up nicely. Great sound quality and some notables such as STEVE STILETTO and TARGETS plus a nice package make this a winner.
A blazing hot dose of live HC by the likes of BGK, LEEWAY, FALSE LIBERTY, and many more. Sound quality is generally good. Snag up this fucker.
This Philippine comp features four bands, BETRAYED, PRIVATE STOCK, GI AND THE IDIOTS, and the WUDS, all recorded live at the last show at Katrina’s (a club at Manila). Good quality punk rock, includes band photos and has a nice package to boot.
A way hot tape starring CLOWN ALLEY, LEEWAY, RAPED TEENAGERS, VICIOUS CIRCLE, and many more. Ninety minutes of great material, so get this, dude!
Another comp of European outfits, showcasing a variety of punk and hardcore sounds. Most notable are GEPOPEL, DISACCORD, and PLAGUE. Good selection of material here.
This decent North American comp has something for every musical taste: powerful hardcore, funnypunk, melodic rock, reggae, a 70’s cover and a couple of mid-tempo standard tunes. F.O.D., A.O.D., DISSONANCE, and SCRAM stand out from the pack, but there could have been better tracks from the name bands overall.
Relatively powerful punk with a considerable amount of gusto. Cool guitar sound, pretty rockin’ stuff here.
Another of Rev. Norb’s “finds”, and the A-side is again barely palatable pop wave, but the flip has a more punk edge. As Norb said, “OK, so they ain’t quite the PAGANS or AVENGERS, but this ain’t S.F.”
A re-release of this retarded song. Trubee sent off ultra-weird lyrics to a Nashville recording outfit, doubting they would ever record it. They did, and Mykel Board now wants us all to know and enjoy it. A short but sweet joke.
Mostly pretty tedious 77-ish punk with a few catchy choruses to make some cuts memorable. Lyrics are in the “personal rebellion” vein. Okay.
Distinctive, nasal vocal meld with a gritty instrumental sound not unlike a cross between BLACK FLAG and traditional fast-and-loud HC. The result is unique and effective a fair proportion of the time, though consistency isn’t S.D.T.’s strong suit. Aggressive and loud.
The re-formed STARVATION ARMY showcases four medium-tempo rockish punk songs on this EP, which lack much in the way of power, melody, or interesting lyrics. Below the standard.
An energetic trio that has a pretty sparse (guitar is largely rhythmic) and clean sound. Goofy lyrics and boppin’ tunes are the thing here, and should appeal to a broad range of listeners.
This well-known English ska outfit fares quite well indeed on this selection of early cuts. Terrific tunes and energetic performances make this record special — in particular the bouncy version of “Monkey Man.” One of the better Peel session releases.
Three songs this time, two of which are up-tempo pop-punk ringers, and another which builds up (too little too late). Again, the obvious BUZZCOCKS influence, and again, enjoyable.
The special appeal of this record is in the fact that it’s the first real taste most people have had (aside from a pathetic bootleg) of the early, punk SLITS. Some familiar, and some unfamiliar material — all of it very raw and quite interesting. Recommended.
Heavy on the twangy guitar and vocals lush with harmony, this group cuts a delicate balance between pretty pop songs and tougher guitar based garage sounds. Good songwriting, like softer tracks by the CELIBATE RIFLES, or the harder stuff by DIED PRETTY. Good, though.
This looks and sounds familiar to me, but I can’t place. It. Anyway, here we have 18 medium tempo garage-y punk tunes, with catchy lyrics. Reminds me of the early Los Angeles underground sound, very rocking with tasteful twists!
Fans of The Scream period SIOUXSIE will find favor with this excellent four-track release recorded in late 77. “Love in a Void” is as great as always, but “Mirage” and “Metal Postcard” also connect with a vengeance. Rawer than other versions of the same songs, and a real treat.
SINS specialize in solid mi-tempo punk with good instrumentals and vocals reminiscent of the early SAINTS. Aside from a few less interesting songs, what emerges here is an extremely promising effort, especially on rootsy punkers like “In the Red” and “Fair Share” which balance power with finesse.
This Texas band opts for a truly punk approach on this five-song effort, and the charm here is largely due to the hard guitar sound and the “fuck you” punk attitude. I liked the title song in particular, though the entire platter is filled with riffy, punchy, enjoyable punk rock. Good.
SCRATCH ACID is back with six demented, charging rockers, a nasty guitar attack, and vocals very reminiscent of NICK CAVE. While not as rootsy as their last LP, the band emphasizes power on this release, which rates as very good for its genre.
This record has more drive and power than a lot of post punk releases these days, but that energy is often sapped by annoying breaks, too many funky riffs (for my taste), and sometimes irritating vocals. Could be worse, though.
These mid-’79 tracks, five in all, show a fair diversity of punk styles and some rockin’ power, especially on “Society.” The RUTS were never a major force in British music, at least in my opinion; fans will find this an interesting document, nonetheless.
Japanese skate metal thrash— what’s next? Well done, but all four songs are devoid of personality. I think Roger really likes them so they must shred.
On the basis of their first two singles, I was expecting bouncy female vocal pop-punk with a great sense of personality. This set of tunes, however, veers into X-MAL DEUTSCHLAND territory with its sung vocals, slower tempos, and thinned out guitar sound. Too bad.
The RAID play basic but enjoyable garage punk with pop influence. Lyrics are in the rebellious vein. Pretty catchy stuff here.
A cassette-only release in a limited edition of 500, doing an entire and complete cover of the STONES’ heroin masterpiece. However, tongue is firmly in cheek as half the songs are done straight and half are completely trashed. Yes, a classic.
Another release in the spirit of early UK punk with just a tad of the old post-punk. Catchy (almost danceable in their B-side dub remixes), and raw enough to be interesting. “South Africa” sounds remarkably like the PISTOLS with effects and “Power for the Many” is a studio piss-about.
PSYCHO has released a full album’s worth of blazing thrash which is undeniably powerful, but some tempo variations would have helped. Lyrics cover conformity, society, Ed Gein, and more. A solid, vicious release.
This album provides a lot of mid-tempo melodic punk with strong rock’n’roll roots. The songs have a good mixture of humor and serious concerns brought out through the lyrics as well as the music. My only complaint: the songs tend to drag on too long.
Easily one of the coolest garage trashers from Australia for a while. Rough-edge vocals with a great hook and anthemic lyrics — a future classic. Just a true slide of sludge with a heart of gold.
Totally raging obnoxious adolescent thrash with some pretty good lyrics, and some pretty bad ones. Lots of spirit and energy in these guys.
POPTONTO utilizes a riffy, traditional approach to mid-tempo HC with an emphasis on power chords and serious lyrics. A very sincere bunch of tracks, but this band doesn’t stand out in the areas of songwriting, or overall personality. Okay.
A true cheese classic. Extolling the virtues of too much acid and hanging out in Haight-Ashbury complete with wah-wah pedal and go-go dancers singing backup. The flip is a little more serious but pleasant melodic pop song with just enough bite to keep you listening.
