I’ve fallen behind some over the past week or so due to a number of things, one being a nasty cold that I somehow picked up during that time. So now I have a backlog of stuff that I want to get up here, which is actually kind of a good thing I suppose. Anyway, I’m basically cold free now and hopefully can be a bit more productive in something other than generating snot at a great rate.
Apologies to Baltimore’s Multicult for having to follow the whole cold/snot rambling. If anyone was grossed out by that, trust me it gets better from here. This here two song single follows a twelve inch that the band put out earlier this year and is still available I believe. If you were to search around and make an assumption based on the very little information you can find about the band, then you’d think they were merely focused on some blunt forceful sounding noise-rock. Granted, the band is in fact a bit noisy, but their music is greatly beat/rhythm driven. Much more than I think they would lead you to believe, it’s almost as if they are selling themselves short. Both sides of this single combine some razor sharp guitar plucking with very strong rhythms that has a bit of a Skin Graft vibe to it, albeit not as damaged or arty. It’s a bit of a meeting between a lot of the noise that’s been heard out of Baltimore lately and the workman/technical side of things of the past Midwest. Really dig this.
Multicult – The Costume (stream)
For those that are interested in picking this one up, it’s available on their Bandcamp. I think they have instructions up there on how to obtain a physical copy of the single. It also comes with a digital download that includes a couple extra tracks. Enjoy!
Three new cuts here from Finnish group Hebosagil. Not all that long ago I had the chance to hear their album Ura, which was some rather killer sludgy influenced noise. However these three tracks kind of caught me off guard as these are very well the noisiest and most aggressive sounding tunes that I’ve heard from them yet. The two songs featured on the a-side in particular are pretty fantastic in this respect, just blown out and relentless from start to finish while still maintaining some of their sludgier beginnings. On par with a number of similar styled bands that really blossomed throughout the 90’s. The b-side “Talta Tuntuu” is more of a representation to the bands sludgier/doom influenced side, spanning six minutes and moving along at a noticeably slower pace than either of the tunes on the flip. Kind of a best of both worlds here on this single, as Hebosagil do both quite well and really have sort of surprised me with how impressively vicious they can sound if they choose to be with the a-side. Pretty fantastic and has already warranted numerous spins. Don’t let this one slip by.
Hebosagil – Saalin Sua (stream)
Anyone interested in picking this up can do so by hitting up Kult of Nihilow. Well worth it.
Not entirely sure if this is the first official single for Cop Warmth or not. They’ve been around in some capacity since around ‘06, so I am guessing not or at the very least there is some homemade DIY stuff floating around out there. Whatever the case may be, this is the first single that I’ve had the chance to get a hold of from the band after sampling some of these tracks previously when they were thrown up on the groups Bandcamp page for free. It’s certainly nice to see them getting pressed to wax, along with a couple more tunes that I hadn’t heard previously, through In the Red.
After hearing the muddy mess of noise that oozes from the grooves of this 7-inch it will surprise absolutely no one to learn that they are from the Houston, Texas area. Their tunes certainly resemble the type of warped grotesque ear abuse that has come flowing out of the state for years now. I don’t know if I’ll ever figure out what exactly it is down there that makes people create music that sounds like they are absolutely fucking losing their minds. I guess the easy answer would be drugs, but how would that be different than anywhere else? Better drugs maybe? Whatever it is, it doesn’t seem like there is any shortage of it. Cop Warmth obviously look to continue to add to this overall perception by throwing in five cuts here that mostly shape themselves around absurdly low/muffled bass throbs and feedback that resemble a garage-rock band gone horribly awry. Occasionally flirting with some bit a melody, it’s not long before the band unmasks and unleashes their frustrations in what is nearly on the same level of primal noise as Twin Stumps or fellow Texans Rusted Shut. Enjoying this.
Cop Warmth -Venus Fly Snatch (stream)
Anyone interested in grabbing this one can do so by hitting up In the Red for the actual 7-inch or it’s available through their Bandcamp digitally. Definitely recommended if the track above strikes your interest at all. Enjoy!
Looking forward to this greatly. I’ll be in attendance for both shows. Might as well see ‘em twice while I can, right? If you’re there and see a skinny dude with a yellow/blue Traindodge shirt. That will be me. Feel free to say hello! Otherwise enjoy the awesome show(s)!
Here we have two east coast bands in Black Kites and Convulsions pairing up for this split release out on Glory Kid/Adagio830. This would be the first time for me hearing Black Kites, which plow through six tracks of max effort heavy hardcore on the a-side of this one, or five if you want to get technical about it. If fierce/passionate hardcore in the area of Disembodied, His Hero Gone, etc. is your thing, then I imagine these guys are already part of your record collection that features numerous copies of the same album on different limited colored vinyl. I kid, I kid…if they aren’t, you’ve likely missed out on the limited blue copies anyway by this point so try and keep it together. Anyway, in all seriousness, it’s probably worth poking around the discography of these gents. They’re obviously into it, and not too shabby of musicians either.
Last heard from Convulsions when Glory Kid passed along their debut 7-inch a year or so ago. Enjoyed it then and probably made some Deadguy or Botch comparisons at the time, no clue. Anyway, these six tracks provide a far better representation of the band I imagine. There is a lot more variation, that’s for sure. They make an odd decision in kicking off their side with a cover, of “Gasoline” by Karate no less. The tune itself is fairly true to the original, obviously dirtied up some however. They follow it up with a track that sounds like it could have been on a split single or comp put out by Clean Plate or Bovine in the 90’s, cool stuff and sort of wish there was more of this out of the tracks they have here. Don’t think anything else approaches the level of “heavy” showcased on that tune. From there the band sort of retreats back into the comfort zone of vaguely mathy groove hardcore with a larger sludge sounding thing going on than I’ve heard before from them. Nevertheless, dug their side quite a bit.
Black Kites - Used (stream)
Convulsions – Decompression Sickness (stream)
For those interested in picking up the split here in the US, Glory Kid has it covered. For those overseas, Adagio830 has copies available. Enjoy!
Having connections to Clockcleaner, Home Blitz, and Espers immediately had me excited for any forthcoming output from current Philly based bad vibe kings Watery Love. That was the feeling I had when their debut single was to be released. What then occurred was them proceeding to beat the shit out of me with the fantastic “(I’m A) Skull” from that very single. It’s been awhile since that impressive debut, so I’m incredibly happy to get my hands on the latest nugget from the band, put out this time on the excellent Siltbreeze Records. While I thought I was ready for round two with these guys, I realized quickly with the opening roar of the a-side “Die With Dignity” that I probably wasn’t. Easily up there for one of the best things I’ve heard this year, it’s a pure A+ slice of messy rock that will undoubtedly rip right through you. On the b-side they choose a cover of Lou Reed’s “Leave Me Alone”, which really couldn’t be any more fitting for the band. It translates pretty well to say the least, as the original is a pretty good slice or slow thudding rock to begin with. It gets the treatment here, to fine results.
Watery Love – Die With Dignity (stream)
Those interested in picking this up can do so by hitting up Siltbreeze or I believe a number of distro’s still have it like Permanent and Midheaven. Each copy also comes with a random insert. Mine happened to be an unwrapped condom decorated with streaks of red marker. Gross, yet appropriate. Enjoy!
Since last hearing from Hurry Up Shotgun, they’ve scaled down to a three piece. Although, I’m not entirely sure if that was the case when they recorded this Self-Titled follow up to their debut record Hold the Angle. Either way, they’ve decided to stick it out as a trio. This record has been in my ears in some way or another for the past couple or so months, as one Conan Neutron (Victory and Associates) has been dishing out songs from it on turntable.fm quite regularly and with good reason. The album shows a dramatic leap for these guys. While I was a fan of their debut, it was distinctively west coast in that mid-nineties indie/mathy sort of way. And while that’s not a bad deal to find oneself in, it’s one that is in no doubt pretty well saturated. Hurry Up Shotgun still puts their stamp of locale here on the bands latest effort, but things have changed. They’ve taken great strides as songwriters and there is reason to believe that they are just beginning to fire on all cylinders.
At the heart of it all, the bands second album is very much a giant rock record. One that goes back through decades of filled arenas and takes note of the energy and power that can be achieved or captured on occasion. They do so by stringing together some subtle progressive arrangements with the bands natural rougher indie beginnings. All of this is merely a platform for the bands cannon of large riffs to be further propped up by Austin Pitts’ vocals, which sound as if they were transported to the present straight from some sold out stadium show in the seventies. Hurry Up Shotgun may not be playing to a similar sized crowd, but there is no arguing that the music featured here is filled with the type of ambition that could open eyes or could fall victim of over thinking and quickly become a mess of things. I have to commend them for being willing to even take that risk when not many will. Thankfully in the end it has worked out quite well for them and hope there is more to come…
Hurry Up Shotgun – Gravity (stream)
Anyone looking to pick this up can do so by simply hitting up the groups Bandcamp. I believe that it will be available on vinyl sometime in the near future through Seismic Wave for those that wish to hold out for that. Either way, enjoy!
This here is the debut single from Mouthbreathers, who have been steadily gaining attention here in the Lawrence/KC area, so it’s fantastic to see these guys with a single on a label like In the Red. My initial interest in the band came from the fact that they are partly made up of members from other great Lawrence bands like Blood on the Wall and one of my personal favorites Rooftop Vigilantes (who have finally released their new record, look for it here at some point…). If you’ve had the chance to hear either of those then you probably already expect to hear some fairly raucous garage-punk on this two song single from the band. That expectation is no less met here with the a-side Anxiety coming full force with a dense attack of distortion molded around some very satisfying hooks while competing against the reverb drenched vocals of Kyle Gowdy. On the b-side is the track “The Creeper”, which doesn’t have the sort of burning pace of the a-side yet is more of a traditional rocker I’d say. Maybe not as interesting as its pairing, but does the trick nonetheless. Good stuff coming from these guys. They play around these parts regularly, so if you haven’t caught them, do so.
Mouthbreathers – Anxiety (stream)
For those interested, this one is available from In the Red for just $5.50 postage paid in the US. Hard to beat that, so get on it. Enjoy!
Finally got my hands on this highly anticipated LP from St. Paul hardcore scuzz slingers Condominium. It follows a string of rather impressive 7-inches that saw the band emerge from more straight forward hardcore/punk to the realm of weird and abrasive that has since ushered in numerous comparisons to one of their home states staples, Amphetamine Reptile. While the singles certainly had a penchant for the noisier outsider vibes of hardcore, I could still never fully connect the dots between the two. However, with the bands debut LP Warm Home it’s certainly a much more logical and appropriate link than ever before instead of just merely being a convenient one. With Warm Home the band is allowed some freedom to really out do themselves with the weirdo vibes here, setting aside a couple tracks of strange tortured strings and tuneless noise to greatly drive the point home with “Why Be Something You’re Not” and album closer “An Arbitrary Choice Between Infinite Coexisting Realities”. However it’s the albums lead track “Life is Amazing” that is up there for me as one of the best tunes I’ve had the pleasure of hearing all year and is no doubt one of Condominium’s best moments thus far, combining a nearly perfect balance of hooks and bad attitude aggression. The only downer to be said about Warm Home is that it’s over far too soon with just seven tracks in 22 minutes. Here’s to hoping these guys have more in the pipeline ready to go soon, as Warm Home has certainly got me hooked.
Condominium – Life is Amazing [MP3]
For those that are looking to pick up Warm Home, it’s available through a number of distro’s currently. I believe Permanent and Grave Mistake still have some copies of this. Run of 752, go get it. Enjoy!
