Scanner Web Zine - The place for Punk Rock, Hardcore, Anarcho and scuzzy Garage Rock 'n' Roll
Top Sounds - O
OCTOBER FILE - A Long Walk On A Short Pier {Golf} Jeez, what a turn up! This UK 4-piece feature ex-members of such dismal bands as turgid Metal groaners JOR and rocksters SCHINDLER as well as the underrated YEAST. I expected the worst… and got a slab of potent power. Imagine the pulsating, uncompromising prowess of KILLING JOKE coupled with the distorto-bass driven, mechanical coldness of BIG BLACK and the inventive HC musings of SNAPCASE and REFUSED and you’re close. The band use musical tension, dynamics and an imposing claustrophobic density to create this totally tumultuous record. The FUGAZI-ish ‘God Hates America’, the fragmentary riffage of ‘South’ and the pummelling ‘Sleeping Through’ take the title of Top Tracks on an album of 11 juddering, convulsing and powerful tunes. Closer, ‘Be The Best You Can Be’ mixes in samples, bass loops, backward beats and all sorts of experimentation which, like similar pieces by BUTTHOLE SURFERS, captivates instead of bores. Great, inventive and sublimely convincing UK noise.
ONWARD PILGRIM - CDEP {Eugene} Another slice of Indie averageness from this trio. It sure is an improvement on the single below although TEENAGE FANCLUB is still a conspicuous comparison. ‘Altered State’ probably takes the EP highlight for me with some surging WIPERS-style guitar workouts. ‘Girl I Knew’ brought to mind ‘Lovey’-era LEMONHEADS and, overall, the influence of GUIDED BY VOICES is paramount. I’m hoping the band’s next release is another four-track EP as it could be the release that moves the band up a whole division. An album, though, could prove to be too much too soon - especially for those who are unconvinced by the band’s lack of a genuine hot-rocking backbone.
ONWARD PILGRIM - Get What You Wanted {Eugene} Mid-paced Indie warblings that sounded pretty lifeless and rather pretentious. The lead track on this 7" is something akin to THE GUN CLUB on its ‘Pastoral Hide And Seek’ album - only nowhere near as exciting, dangerous or innovative. The flip, ‘Fourteen Rings’, ventured into FAREWELL BEND meets TEENAGE FANCLUB territory and is the stronger of the two tracks for me - but that’s not to say I particularly enjoyed it. This is limited to 1,000 and is cut on a neat opaque vinyl.