Top Sounds - A
A DEATH IN THE FAMILY - This Microscopic War {Poison City/ Newest Industry} Huge sounding album from this band outta Melbourne, Australia. The guitars hit and splinter in huge barrages of sound while the rhythms roll and convulse, working with a male/female dual vocal that’s both barbed and bittersweet. You feel swamped by the sounds while being simultaneously lovingly caressed - by a cheese grater. Frankie Stubbs produced and a big LEATHERFACE/ HOT WATER MUSIC influence is evident if mixed with the best bits of JAWBOX, PIXIES and RITES OF SPRING. Highlights are many: ‘Sink Or Swim’, ‘Somethings Out Of Tune’, opener ‘Familiar Strangers or the closing ‘Gasping’ all vie for ‘best bit’. The band also incorporates violin, keyboards and open-tuned guitars adding depth of sound. If the band was from Gainesville and signed to No Idea or Jade Tree they’d be huge. As it is, the only fault with this record is just how the hell is the band gonna follow it?? One thing’s for sure - I can’t wait!
ADOLESCENTS - Live At The House Of Blues {Kung-Fu} I received absolutely zero in the way of packaging and info with this, so I can't tell you if it's the original line-up, but I can tell you it's a 20-track screamer of a live disc by this seminal USHC band. Things kick off with a blazing 'No Way' and culminate nearly an hour later with that classic ode to the ultimate Punk Rock apartment block, 'Kids From The Black Hole'. In between you get all your fave snotty-voiced gems: 'Amoeba', 'Democracy', 'Creatures', 'Welcome To Reality', 'Wrecking Crew'… ah fuck - they're all corkers!! Even the new tunes kick serious ass. Production is really sharp too; you feel like you are at the show and all the in between song banter has thankfully been retained - especially cool as it attacks projectile-throwing dicks in the crowd. On the evidence of this, this is one band that has made a comeback that is totally worthwhile, incisive and exciting. Can't wait for the new album.
ADOLESCENTS - The Complete Demos 1980-1986 {Frontier} Jeez, there's been a virtual overdose of ADOLESCENTS material of late - and I love it! This 16-tracker is very much for 'fans only' and compiles tracks dating back to a band rehearsal from March 1980 recorded in Tony's Mum's garage. Yep, it's rough-as-guts but the songs - which are not released in any format elsewhere - make up for that; 'Growing Up Today' shows signs of the greatest that would be achieved later. There are then some alternative recordings of tracks from the seminal 'Blue Album' with the five bootleg-quality tracks recorded at the Casbah, Fullerton in July 1980 showing an increase in pace and power; 'Wrecking Crew' is light-speed here. The disc highlight is 'Richard Hung Himself' which was originally recorded for the 'Welcome To Reality' EP but was omitted from the actual release. Some recordings of songs that ended up on the 'Brats In Battalions' album finish the disc off in fine style. Not a release for the curious, but for the already converted, it's totally essential.
ADOLESCENTS - OC Confidential {Finger} Blasting back like a Punk Rock suicide bomber at a Good Charlotte show, the mighty ADOLESCENTS return - and return in devastating style. This 13-tracker shows the band has matured whilst having lost none of its snotty delivery. The whole album has a very political lyrical basis with 'Hawks And Doves', 'Lockdown America' and 'Monsanto Hayride' being the obvious examples. With the exception of 'Pointless Teenage Anthem' (the title says it all), this lacks the fury of the classic 'Blue Album', even though the title track could be 'Kids From The Black Hole Pt.II'. For references, well besides being - go figure - the ADOLESCENTS, there's an 'Against The Grain' BAD RELIGION vibe, a hint of the CLASH and that coolest of snotty vocal deliveries that only Tony Reflex can manage. Blazing stuff… If only more 'reformed' bands could deliver a reformation disc of this quality the world of Punk Rock would be much healthier.
AFI - Nitro Years {Nitro} I’ve always had a lot of respect for AFI. From the early fast and thrashy HC to the brooding, powerful and dark Punk Rock of the band’s sound today, it is a band that has continually progressed, broken down barriers and rarely disappointed. Also, each time I have interviewed vocalist Davey Havok, he has always been a sincere and rather humble fella, which adheres me to the band even more. This, as the title suggests, is a 15-track comp culled from the band’s 5-year stint at Nitro. It’s only when you get an array of tracks taken from various stages of the band’s history that you discover just how strong AFI’s songs are. Be it the freewheeling HC of ‘Perfect Fit’ or the majestic grace of ‘The Days Of The Phoenix’, there’s not a duffer on here; each track is a concise and finely structured slab of potent Punk Rock. It’s not just a straightforward cash-in comp either as some tracks have not been issued on CD and it also includes various EP tracks. Without doubt, this is a comprehensive collection of great tunes from a band that will surely go down as one of the best Punk/HC bands of the late 90s-early 2000s. Good atmospheric and tres Gothic packaging from Nitro as well. My only criticism is that at under 40-minutes playing time, it’s a tad short. A greater testament to the band’s Nitro Years would surely have been a 20-tracker, would it not?
AGAINST ME! - Searching For A Former Clarity {Fat Wreck} It's without doubt that this band has already released some incredibly passionate and angry stuff. It's also without doubt that this band is one of the most distinctive and original around. And it's without doubt that with this 14 tracker the band has stepped up its own impeccable standards and released what could be the best album of 2005. This has everything the band always threatened to deliver: Incisive songs screaming against the record industry and the current political climate; a conviction to the playing and, in particular, the vocal delivery that only the very best bands on the planet can match; a momentum and continuity that sees the album flow and grow in stature with every spin. The production - handled by J. Robbins - perfectly suits the band. It's sparse, crisp and free from flashy modern studio wizardry. As for the songs, well, if the tirade against the music industry that is 'Unprotected Sex With Multiple Partners' and the swaggering assurance of 'Don't Lose Touch' fail to register on you, well, leave your blinkers on and enjoy your next ANWL show. If there is ever need for proof that traditional-style folk songs and Punk can mix, then this it is as it combines the bittersweet blues of late GREEN ON RED with the anger of AVAIL and the passion of SOCIAL DISTORTION. And that has NOT done justice to this disc. In a word - essential.
AGAINST ME! - Americans Abroad!!! {Fat Wreck} A 17-track live slab recorded in London on the ‘...Former Clarity’ tour. It’s a typically blazing affair featuring tracks from the band’s three albums + a witty new song, ‘Americans Abroad’. It’s neat to hear the ‘...Clarity’ songs stripped to their bare-bones without losing anything in the translation. I kinda thought Fat would have released this as part of the ‘Live In A Dive’ series as opposed to a straight-up live album - their loss maybe. The passion and zeal of the performance is quite staggering at times, especially on ‘Problems’ which is included as a CD-ROM video (which the Scanner computers couldn’t actually access!}. Snag is, I no longer see or feel any credibility in a band that could write ‘Unprotected Sex With Multiple Partners’ and, within 12 months, sign to a major!! It all seems to suck of using Punk Rock as a stepping stone to rock stardom - what gives? I find it hard to believe any band, in today’s climate and of the persuasion that AGAINST ME! is, could find a more appropriate, supportive or sincere label as Fat. Oh well, I guess the prospect of Meatloaf or Phil Collins guesting on future AGAINST ME! singles (all of which will be featured on the album of course) does have a vague perverse appeal, and no doubt the band will feel very much at home.
AIRBOMB – PNUK {Pnuk Records} I recall seeing this Brit 4-piece blast away all competition at an all-dayer in Wisbech back in about ’99 and it’s good to see that time has not mellowed the band’s abrasive ardour. This 17 tracker brings to mind SHAM 69 playing THE MISFITS ‘Earth AD’ era with an intravenous drip-feed of MOTORHEAD. The disc was recorded at the band’s own studio and is released on its own label too, so it’s a resolutely DIY slab – and one that blazes with most cylinders firing. It only really falters with ‘Devil Car’, a hyper-thrash attack that careers out of control and ends up sounding rather trite. In comparison, the slower ‘Sunshine’ is a ‘Baby Baby’ (VIBRATORS) style highlight with effective reflective lyrics. Other standouts include the rumbustious ‘Tear Up My Brain’ and ‘It Ain’t Over’. The album ends on a high, one that defines all that has gone before: ‘This Is Punk Rock’.
ALL AMERICAN WEREWOLVES – Hate Rock USA {Eugene} 10 boisterous and bilious tracks of hefty RAMONE-O-Core that fly by in less than 20 mins! Unlike many bands that employ the RAMONES rock ‘n’ roll basis, AAW don’t come off sounding wimpy. They mix up an early MISFITS attack and an ELECTRIC FRANKENSTEIN attitude to create a meaty noise of adrenalin-laced guitars and sulphate-fuelled drumming. As the disc’s title suggests, you won’t find any dogmatic political rhetoric or dreary Emo crapola here. This is Punk Rock ‘n’ Roll with attitude, perfect for getting loaded and off to. There’s a great ragged feel to this too; thankfully there’s no hint of an overtly polished Epi-Punk sound. It’s all been recorded on a 4-track also, giving it a live ambience best exemplified by the tracks ‘Can’t Be Caught’ and ‘Run The Night’. Great, good time Rock ‘n’ Roll that spits out big lumps of Punk phlegm.
ALUMINUM KNOT EYE - Trunk Lunker {Dead Beat/Trick Knee} Garagey rock noise that appealed as much as eating bull's testicles - before they have been cut off. Think scratchy, early WIRE, TEEN GENERATE garageisms, DEVO-oddness and a vague CRAMPS rockabilly thang and then submerge the tape in paint stripper for six months. The result will be similar, although probably better, than this. Not for me and, quite frankly, I fail to see who this will appeal to.
AMERICAN STEEL - Destroy Their Future {Fat Wreck} And so the climb up the lucre-laden ladder of ‘Wanna Be!-Against Me!’ cloneage begins. Yep, the spectre of Gabel and co invades every track here; had it been a new band I could almost have believed it but this is AMERICAN STEEL’s fourth album! I’ve got the band’s Lookout! debut, ‘Rogue’s Gallery’, and it’s a hugely different sound. That said, that was eight years ago and the band split up for five of those. Progression? Maybe. Smelling the green back? Definitely!! But, for all my skepticism, I enjoyed this record. It’s well crafted and well played but just a tad too radio-friendly. A little more petulance would have worked wonders to tracks like ‘Razorblades’ while ‘Mean Streak’ and ‘Or, Don’t You Remember?’ would be real impressive - had AGAINST ME! not released ‘...Eternal Cowboy’. Definitely a band that is searching for a former clarity...ANAL BEARD - Din Noir {Boss Tuneage} Surrealist, unfocused crap. Imagine TV PERSONALITIES on a mushroom trip whilst drawing on a joint prepared by WAT TYLER. Quite unlistenable. I’m sure this is considered ‘witty’ or ‘out there’ or ‘eclectically fucked up’. Well, to me it’s none of those - it’s just ingenuous crap. I sat through this three times - the latter two in an attempt to find a redeeming feature. At the end of the third spin I found it - that I shall never, ever have to play this piece of puss again.
ANTHRAX – One Last Drop {Happy Release} If ever an Anarcho band deserved a full-on discography disc, it was ANTHRAX – the English version from Gravesend, Kent. The band played impassioned, pissed off Anarcho Punk that certainly shared sensibilities with early CONFLICT, although a mix of FLUX OF PINK INDIANS and EXIT-STANCE is probably a better reference. This 18-track collection compiles the band’s two demos, the classic ‘They’ve Got It All Wrong’ EP released on Small Wonder, the Crass Recs EP ‘Capitalism Is Cannibalism’, a track from Mortarhate’s ‘Who? What? Why? When? Where?’ comp and finally a couple of unreleased live tracks. What did surprise me a bit is just how biting, vibrant and fresh these tracks still sound – the Small Wonder EP in particular has a vitality that is lacking in much of today’s Punkage. It’s packaged in a fantastic wrap-around card sleeve featuring all the artwork from the singles. You also get a badge, stick and fold out poster. The only negative is the lack of biography/ recording notes/ personal input from the band members. I’ve always considered ANTHRAX hugely underrated and, hopefully, this comp will reawaken the band to Punkers today. ARAMEUS - Is Your Revolution Merely For Display? {Engineer} The debut release from this UK 6-piece, combining the furious modern HC of DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN with the intense Metal thrashing of CANAAN and SLAYER. I have to say, it’s way too Metal for me and its ties with the HC I love (MDC/MINOR THREAT) are very distant. I’ll admit, this is better than a lot of this kinda stuff. The dual vocalists interact well, alternating between screaming, strangulated gargles and singing while the band often falls into a proficient GRADE-style groove that held my attention. ‘DIY’, ‘Tide Down’ and the opening ‘Prism’ stood out for me and while it may not be of my liking, it is done well. Production is pretty crisp and if CONVERGE, DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, HIMSA and SHAI HULUD do it for you, then ARAMEUS could be your new favourite band.
ARRIVALS - Marvels Of Industry {Recess} Wow - a decidedly un-Recess-like record! There’s little in the way of snotty, bratty Punk phlegm here - although it is a distinctly Punk Rock release. This really brought to mind early (as in pre-major label muso whores) AGAINST ME! as it’s political and socially aware without being dogmatic and contains some instantly memorable choruses. That’s all mixed with a joyous ‘Hootenanny’ era REPLACEMENTS attitude and a hint of the DC post-HC sound. Highlights are many, be it the epic ‘Quiet American’, the rock-out frivolity of ‘Open-faced’, the inventive arrangement of ‘Company Of Salt’ or disc highlight ‘Dangerous’. The band feature Paddy outta DILLINGER FOUR and, like D4, THE ARRIVALS share the ability of insightful lyrics and stunning songs. A great record that shits all over the AGAINST ME! major label debut and one that gets better with each consecutive play.ATOMIC INFLUX - Sickened (Chaos City) Resolutely DIY release featuring eight embittered, caustic and angry as hell tracks. It’s well structured stuff too with substance, passion and power. The band is really tight, mixing faster freewheeling riffs with more atmospheric, claustrophobic drama, perfectly represented by ‘Stench Of Greed’. Lyrically it’s intelligent with well-sussed attacks on child abuse, sweatshops and irrational hate coupled with the promotion of individualism. There is a lighter side also - ‘Wasted’ is already adopted here in the House Of Scanner as an anthem for boozing! Sophie, the singer, has a great voice too; one moment the burning cynicism of early SIOUXSIE, the next the angry unpredictable bellow of Theo LUNACHICK. Just a shame those vocals weren’t louder in the mix and the guitar solos a tad shorter (‘Label Slut’ in particular). Good to see stuff of this quality - and conviction - coming outta Thailand. atomicinflux@yahoo.com
AUTOMATICS - Forty Virgins In The Afterlife {Trash 2001} If the PR blurb is to be believed, these guys were playing Pop-Punk back in the days of the PISTOLS and shared a stage with X-RAY SPEX. JOHNNY THUNDERS even occasionally jammed with them! Ha - yeah, OK! This is simply tired, laboured Pub Rock. There’s not enough spite, venom or energy for it to have any affiliation with Punk Rock. A lot of it comes on like those other tired walking corpses - GUITAR GANGSTERS. In fact, this sounds much like those so-called Alternative Rock-lite loser bands that clog up the charts. And the title track is frankly an embarrassment. Oh - former SEX PISTOL Steve Jones plays on a few tracks too - I assume that should impress me?