Massachusetts 5-piece LANDOWNER’s new album – Escape the Compound – sounds like what I imagine a Jello Biafra and Devo or Suburban Lawns collaboration would sound like. My daughter thinks that Mr. Shaw’s vocals sound like Napoleon Dynamite.
Dumb comparisons aside, Escape the Compound is a kick ass, hyperactive, post-punk album and it’s well worth your time.
You can listen to “Heat Stroke” and “Victim of a Narcissist’s Tactics” (below) for a taste. Escape the Compound is out now on born yesterday records. Enjoy.
Lawrence, Kansas duo Sweeping Promises took the indie world by storm with their solid debut release Hunger For A Way Out on Feel It Records back in 2020 and now 3 years later they are back with their sophomore release Good Living Is Coming For You vaporizing the dreaded “sophomore slump” curse into the ether.
GLICFY is 30 minutes of infectious post punk meets new wave/punk rock goodness. It’s a big step forward from their debut (think The Empire Strikes Back) and a definite contender for album of the year.
GLICFY is out now on Feel It Records. All hyperbole aside, you need this album and we have it for you right here. Don’t trust me? Check out my obsession “Connoisseur of Salt” (below) for a taste. Enjoy.
Fishbone the Red Hot almighty legends of ska & alternative rock music are back with a brand new single (the first with Cris Dowd in the band since 1994) “All We Have Is Now”, which comes off the new compilation Bottle Music For Broken People on Fat Mike’s new imprint (under Fat Wreck Chords) Bottles to the Ground.
“All We Have Is Now” was recorded and produced by Fat Mike and Norwood Fisher and is a teaser for a new EP to be released later this year. It implores us to live in the moment, “to take advantage of the gift of the ever present now”. It’s a bouncy track, packed with all the keys and horns you could want from a new Fishbone song, including a classic Angelo sax solo.
Check out the video and stream of the new single below and watch for Fishbone on tour, hopefully somewhere near you, with Les Claypool’s Flying Frog Brigade starting in late March.
Chicago trio Oozing Wound have been melting faces and shredding ear drums since 2012, and I’m happy to report that nothing has changed over these last 11 years.
Zack Weil’s “David Yow-like” vocals and sharp like a hacksaw blade guitar licks tear their way through the muck and sludge provided by Kevin Cribbin (bass) and Kyle Reynolds (drums) on their latest album We Cater To Cowards.
Speaking of muck and sludge, give “Old Sludge” and “Face Without Eyes” (below) a spin for a taste.
We Cater To Cowards is out now via Thrill Jockey. It’s a smasher. Oozing Wound still brings the heat. Enjoy.
5-piece Baltimore dance-punkers PLRLS are back with a brand new batch of synth-fried punk rock tunes presented to us, their loyal listeners, as Curses.
It’s been 6 years since the release of their last album, Have You Seen My Fancy Pony, and you may be wondering “after all that time do they still have the fire, the bounce, the energy to pull off 11 more zany, pop punk songs?” The answer to that, my friends is a resounding “HELLS YES!!!” Not only does Curses pick up where HYSMFP left off, but it has a sharper (dare I say slightly heavier) edge to it, like these songs have been clawing their way out of the band’s guts since 2017.
Check out “Curses”, “Miscellanea” and “Death To Maria” below for a taste of some killer vocal harmonies, chugging bass lines, razor-sharp guitar licks and more synths than you can shake a stick at.
Curses is out now via Ashtray Monument Records. You need this record in your life; you deserve this record in your life. Enjoy.
Houston band Astragal’s debut LP Pure Cashmere came out back in April of ’22 and I am mad at myself for taking 10 months to finally listen to it. Pure Cashmere is solid from start to finish; if you enjoy Brit-pop, jangle-pop, shoegaze and post-punk, you are going to love this album as Astragal blends those genres masterfully together for its nearly 39 minute run time.
Pure Cashmere is out now via Astragal’s Bandcamp page. Go and buy it right now. Think of it as hopefully investing in a potential vinyl release of this album. Enjoy
I think it’s pretty safe to say that the members of Austin band Easy Prey are pissed off. At least that’s the vibe I get while listening to their debut LP Unrest (which I have been listening to almost non-stop for the past few days). If my frustrations and anxieties about all the BS going on around all of us – every day – were a band, I think it would sound a lot like Easy Prey.
Unrest was written during the lockdowns of 2020 and “heavily influenced by the circumstances of 2020 – experiencing mass unemployment and civil strife while the ruling class thrived.”
Unrest is a masterclass on what makes a great post-hardcore album — it’s heavy, it’s loud, it’s punishing and it doesn’t let up — ever — during its 10 song, 30 minute span. Check out “Other People” below for a taste.
For me listening to Unrest has been a bit of a cathartic experience, where for 30 minutes these guys are pissed off for me, which provides a small — but much needed — sense of relief. Thanks for that Easy Prey!
Unrest is out now via Hellminded Records. I highly, highly recommend it.
Melbourne trio CLAMM, are taking no prisoners with their pummeling brand of heavy-ass punk rock on their new album Care. Just give “Scheme” and “Bit Much” a spin (below) to see what I mean.
From the album PR, CLAMM are “explore(ing) the confusion of what it is to be a young person trying to live an honourable life in this fucked up world. Their songs are about trying to navigate systems of power and oppression while retaining a healthy sense of self and mental health. Community, creativity, and catharsis are what they hope to achieve through their music.” Is there a better reason to make music in this stupid world than that?
With their second album, Excess, Automatic has proved that they are adept at both timing and rhythmic composition, as each song builds eagerly and each accompanying instrumental layer is carefully interwoven. While the lyrics reflect the presence of excess in a capitalistic sense, there is no excess present in Automatic’s musical arrangements. Everything is meticulously crafted, and the production on this album is outstanding. Most of the songs on the album begin with electrifying, charged introductions comprised of just bass and drums, with the exception of “Teen Beat,” in which isolated vocals precede any instruments. Each song swiftly transitions into synth-doused verses that, while reminiscent of the 1980’s, feel fresh rather than recycled.
The lyrics in Excess delve into the grotesque nature of corporate culture and, as a whole, provide an overarching critique of capitalism in general. In “Skyscraper,” a personal favorite of mine, the lyrics are “Up here where the sun has a beautiful shine / To light up perverted American minds / The white hand of luxury, so cool and refined / No trace of the miserable people outside.” Automatic effectively riffs about the inefficacy of a system where climbing the ladder distances one from the brutal reality that exists around them- that a win, essentially, is always someone else’s loss. The somewhat impersonal nature of the lyrics reflects the lack of compassion in a culture that values personal success at the expense of others. But the thing about Excess is that one doesn’t need a complete understanding of the lyrics to appreciate the album; it is as danceable as it is clever.
In many ways, this album reminds me of LCD Soundsystem’s Sound of Silver, if LCD Soundsystem was a female-fronted band from Los Angeles. Excess channels Sound of Silver in its lyrical richness, production, quippiness, and dance-punk style that feels New Order-esque. Automatic’s vocal and instrumental approach is more subdued than James Murphy’s in Sound of Silver, but it works well, as it compliments the album’s commentary on the hollow pursuit of consumerism (like in “NRG”, which has the refrain “You don’t have a choice, so your body is a product / Was any of it real, all the things that you wanted?”).
Automatic has opened for IDLES, Parquet Courts, Tame Impala, and, come September, is set to open for Osees, but this album has proved that they have what it takes to climb a ladder that’s all their own, which, hopefully, will take them into the upper-echelons of the alternative scene where they can get the recognition they deserve. Excess is out now via Stones Throw Records and is currently available on vinyl at 3hive Record Lounge. In addition to “Skyscraper,” be sure to give both “NRG” and “Venus Hour” a listen.
SLC’s Air Vent Dweller is the solo project of one Charlie Pell. His new, self-titled EP is 6 tracks of synth-fried, punk rock goodness — kind of like a lo-fi Atom And His Package.
Check out the short and sweet “Fork and Spoon” below, then head to Charlie’s Bandcamp page and buy this EP. DO IT!
