Punk – Page 6 – 7th Level Music

The Anomalys drive you into a “Panic” with their ferocious new single.

For the twenty years, Slovenly Recordings has released brain dissolving garage punk n’roll noise from all pockets on Earth; The Anomalys have been in on the hell ride for seventeen of those years. They’re one of the first bands the Slovenly crew scooped up from Amsterdam and have backed the hard-hitting surf garage trio since releasing their furious n’ assertive “Black Hole Blues/Nat Approved” single in 2005, all the way to their latest offering in 2022 with Glitch.

Glitch is twelve years in the making, with the band pumping out a slew of singles leading up to this release since launching their no-frills raw n’ raucous Slovenly epoch S/T LP in 2010. In the time frame since then and Glitch, The Anomalys kept their style of high octane garage punk n’ roll in the mind of the masses through a slew of single releases coinciding with sporadic touring throughout Europe and into the United States and down to South America with festival appearances at SXSW, Burning Man, Gonerfest, We’re Loud!, Funtastic Dracula, Cosmic Trip, Hipsville, Psycho Carnival, Curitiba Rock, and many others.

In 2019, The Anomalys kicked it into high gear once again with their ringleader, Bone, recruiting his Aquitaine-based brothers-in-arms Looch Vibrato (Magnetix, Louder Than Death, Avenue Z) and Remi Pablo (Weird Omen, Escobar) to round out the new lineup and reconvene in Toulouse at Swampland Studios to begin the Glitch sessions with studio maestro Lo-Spider at the production helm. Three years later, and a different world since Glitch sees the light, this track rock n’roll propaganda machine debuts their frantic surf-groove single, “Panic,” to showcase the session’s sweat soaked effort.

Glitch will be available on all digital platforms February 18th and in black and highly limited transparent red vinyl (100 copies pressed) exclusively through the Slovenly Recordings mail order on March 25th.

With a tour throughout Spain just concluded this past weekend, The Anomalys are planning more dates in late Spring/Early Summer around Europe, including an appearance at Cosmic Trip Festival in Bourges, FR in late May.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Matthew at Shattered Platter PR.]

Rewind Review: The Damned – Final Damnation (1989)

Recorded live at London’s Town & Country Club on June 13, 1988, Final Damnation is a time capsule of The Damned‘s reunion concert. All of the original members of the band are here: Dan Vanian on vocals, Rat Scabies on drums, Captain Sensible on bass and guitar, and Brian James on guitar. They also bring in Bryan Merrick on bass and Roman Jugg on keyboards for songs on which those guys played on Damned albums featuring them. The band had just been dropped by their label before cutting this record, and the unhinged chaos of that moment in the band’s timeline can be felt and heard.

Starting with “See Her Tonite,” the band barely has time to say hello before launching into furious punk riffs. “We’re not doin’ it for the money!” Captain Sensible yells to the crowd afterwards. The crowd replies with, “Oh, yes you are!” and soon Sensible is chugging out the always thrilling bass line of “Neat Neat Neat” and the crowd is going bonkers. “Born to Kill” hits like a metal rockabilly.

I’m not sure if Sensible or Scabies is playing hardest on “I Fall,” as they’re both going nuts throughout it (Scabies has the slight edge, I think.). “Fan Club” has a great swagger to it, and a great solo from James, too. “Fish” is a fast fan-favorite. Their cover of The Beatles’ “Help” is almost unrecognizable as it hits like repeated punches to the face. “New Rose,” of course, gets the crowd into a frenzy, and their cover of The Stooges‘ “I Feel Alright” is stunning.

The “second half” of the album / show starts with their classic tune “I Just Can’t Be Happy Today” – a song that’s still resonant decades later. “Wait for the Blackout” has Sensible wailing on his guitar for the back of the room. Jugg’s opening piano chords on “Melody Lee” are like a fake jab before the hard cross of the guitars and drums.
“Noise, Noise, Noise” is as raucous as you hope it will be, as is “Love Song” – in which it sounds like Scabies destroys his kit.

The opening chords and beats of “Smash It Up” give you some time to catch your breath before you want to join the band in smashing everything in sight, and they end the show with two snarky covers – “Looking at You” by MC5 and The Rolling Stones‘ “The Last Time.”

Thankfully, this wouldn’t be the last time The Damned played a show or even released an album, but Final Damnation is a great recording of a great show. There’s also a DVD of the entire performance out there (which can also be found on YouTube) to help capture the madness.

Keep your mind open.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wBu6SrLobk

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Top 30 albums of 2021: #’s 30 – 26

As always, I actually wait until the previous year has ended to put out my list of my top albums (and live performances, which will be listed in other posts), because albums are released all the time. Many excellent albums have been released in many Decembers and gone forgotten or ignored by music critics and bloggers.

So, without further ado, let’s get started. I reviewed sixty-five albums last year, so I cut the list in half to cover the top of the bunch.

#30: Shred Flintstone – Unlimited Power

This is a wild punk rock record from a band with a goofy name and serious chops. I mean, you have to be good with a name like “Shred Flintstone.” Unlimited Power is appropriately titled, because the whole thing is bursting with energy.

#29 Open Hand – Weirdo

This is a fun dance-rock record that was several years in the making. It’s like a combination of LCD Soundsystem and !!!.

#28: Jealous – Lover / What’s Your Damage?

This is a wild double EP of post-punk and krautrock from Berlin. It ranges from dance beats to rock riffs and was one of the best releases fro Dedstrange all year.

#27: Cuffed Up – Asymmetry

This four-song EP is solid alternative rock with catchy hooks, great double vocals, and heavy riffs that bode well for a full-length album in the future.

#26: The Black Angels – Live at Levitation

The Reverb Appreciation Society has been issuing “Live at Levitation” albums for a little while now, so it was no surprise that The Black Angels, who started the RAS and also started and still help curate the annual Levitation Music Festivals in Austin, Texas and Angers, France, should get their own release in the series. It covers some of the bands’ earliest performances at the festival and is a treat for fans of the band, the festival, and psychedelic rock.

Who cracked the top 25? Come back tomorrow to find out!

Keep your mind open.

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Review: The Monsters – You’re Class, I’m Trash

Hailing from Bern, Switzerland, The Monsters are punk giants in their homeland who make unapologetic trash rock, as is evidenced on their newest album You’re Class, I’m Trash.

The album opens with the explosive “Gimme Germs,” and sets the tone for the whole record. You barely have time to breathe throughout it. “Smell My Tongue” belongs on a soundtrack for a John Waters film with its trashy lyrics and frantic pounding. “Carpool Lane” borders on sludge rock. “Dead” cranks up the fuzz on the guitars and vocals (Them yelling “Dead!”).

The guitars on “Stranger to Me” sound like angry hornets. “Blasphemy” is equally angry. “Yellow Snow Drink” is almost goth-country, and “Electro Bike Asshole” is back to the fiery punk (and might be the best punk song title of 2021). “Get Drunk on You” must slay live because it flattens your immediate surroundings coming out of your speakers as they subtly sing about oral sex with lyrics like, “I eat you, baby, and you eat me.” “I Love You” is a love song sung by a madman.

“Devil Baby” could fit into a 1960s Italian horror film (especially with the creepy opening piano chords) or an occult biker movie (with the wild guitars) with ease. “My Down Is Your Up” sounds like something Mr. Bungle wishes they’d written. The album ends with another, even spookier version of “Dead,” a live version of “Gimme Germs,” and the title track – which sounds like a runaway train in which the musical entertainment in the dining car is a zombie DJ playing scratched records.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Matt at Shattered Platter PR.]

Century Egg are “Moving On” with their new single.

Century Egg is a band of escape artists with a focus on playing visceral punk rock. Today the Halifax, Nova Scotia-based quartet are sharing their new single, “Moving On” which makes up the first half of a double A-side single release, the second of which will follow next month. The new track, released via Forward Music Group, marks the return of the band following their Bandcamp Daily and Exclaim-tipped EP, Little Piece of Hair which was released earlier this year (watch the video for “Do You Want To Dance?” here)

Following previous spots opening for the likes of Lido Pimienta – a self-proclaimed fan of the band with Robert Drisdelle, guitarist in Century Egg producing a track on her Polaris Prize-winning album, La Papessa – Partner, Julie Doiron, and more, Century Egg will be performing at Toronto’s Handlebar on November 14 and La Sala Rosa as part of M for Montreal (Mothland’s stage) on November 19 to celebrate the release of these new tracks. This new single, “Moving On” further cements their inspirations taken from Asian pop and rock artists such as Faye Wong, Jun Togawa, Spitz, Cui Jain, Pu Shu, along with the driving post-punk rhythm section and blistering guitar work taken from The Stooges, Thin Lizzy, etc.

Speaking about the new single, Century Egg says: “This is a song about trying to detach yourself from your past and let go of the trauma that holds you back from finally feeling better.”

Century Egg is made up of singer, Shane Song (she/her), bassist/backing vocalist, Matty Grace (she/her/they/them), guitarist, Robert Drisdelle (he/him) and drummer, Megumi Yoshida (she/her). Away from Century Egg, Song works as a visual artist/video game artist, Grace plays in numerous bands including Cluttered (tipped by Laura Jane Grace of Against Me!), Drisdelle plays and arranges with Lido Pimienta (amongst other projects) and Yoshida performs in Bad Vibrations, Dog Day, Not You and more.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Gabriel at Clandestine Label Services.]

Review: Osees – The Chapel, SF 10.2.19

This live recording from the ever-prolific, ever-bonkers Osees, finds them on the last night of a set of gigs in one of their practical backyards – The Chapel in San Francisco – just before the pandemic fully hit the United States and shut down band tours for over a year. The band had no idea that shutdown was coming, of course, but they played (like they always do) like it might be their last show for a while.

The show starts with the instant mosh pit-inducing “Static God” with John Dwyer asking for a cigarette and wondering “What’s it like beneath the rubble?” while he and his bandmates go nuts. “Jettisoned” takes off into psychedelic territory with Dwyer’s soaring solo and Tom Dolan‘s trippy synths.

A shortened (yet still over seven minutes) version of “Henchlock” follows. It’s a brilliant psych. “Together Tomorrow” is a bit of a psych-rock appetizer to the massive, calorie-laden meal of “Animated Violence.” As if that weren’t crazy enough, along comes “Gholu,” during which drummers Dan Rincon and Paul Quattrone seem to challenge each other in a contest of who can be the first to beat their kit through the floor.

“Plastic Plant” is one that the Osees don’t often play live, but it’s always great when they do. Dolan’s fat synths compliment well with Tim Hellman‘s wicked bass riffs. “C” is a funky one, with Dolan’s synths again taking on a lead role, sometimes more than Dwyer’s guitar. “Nite Expo” goes from plucky synths to rowdy guitar in a nearly neck-wrenching moment. The closer, “Encrypted Bounce,” is over fourteen minutes of wild psych mixed with garage rock mixed with chaos (translation: It’s outstanding.).

Don’t miss this if you’re a fan of Osees, or even live music in general. They’re one of the best live bands on the planet right now, and this is a great recording of their energy.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: The Harry Angslingers – Go Tranquility Base

Named after the main guy behind the criminalization of marijuana, The Harry Anslingers are a wild German punk band whose newest record, Go Tranquility Base (sometimes known just as Tranquility Base), is a fun, fast romp through outer space.

The entire album, which lasts a little over sixteen minutes, tells the tale of the Apollo 11 mission with fuzzed guitars, echoed vocals, and afterburner drums. “Whatever you do, it doesn’t matter. Ease up!” they proclaim on opening track “Ease Up.” Life’s not permanent, so why take it seriously? The Anslingers know this, why don’t the rest of us?

“E.S.A.” (European Space Agency) has some of Davee Damage‘s craziest bass lines on the whole record. “Testimony” is an instant toe-tapper that will energize you far more than some electrolyte-laden drink you’d get on the International Space Station. “Super Chrome” sounds like it was recorded in zero gravity while aboard a classic, metal-riveted Flash Gordon spaceship spewing white-hot flames as it flies alongside warrior hawk-men.

“Second to None” is a bonkers punk rager coming in under two minutes but packing enough punch for a three-minute boxing round. I don’t know how Damage and guitarist Rudy Reefer can keep up with drummer G.G. Angslinger throughout it. “Upside Down & Out” gets off to a bit of a ska start with its bass line but soon cranks up the gritty fuzz and it’s pushing hard to escape gravity. The closing track, “Restricted,” somehow pushes even harder and faster. A live set from these guys must be like running a fifty-yard dash while being chased by a rhino.

Get on board their rocket ship and hold on for dear life.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Flatty at It’s Eleven Records.]

Rewind Review: Buzzcocks – Orgasm Addict – Live (2008)

This ten-track live recording of a Buzzcocks concert in Paris, France from April 1995 clocks in at barely over half an hour and packs more punch than a show four times that length by most other bands.

Starting with Pete Shelley yelling / singing “I Don’t Know What to Do with My Life” (the theme of pretty much everyone at various stages of existence), the band tears off to a great start with hammering drums by Phil Barker that sound like they might get pounded through the floor, crazy bass from Tony Barber, and walls of guitars from Shelley and Steve Diggle falling on you.

There’s barely a moment to catch your breath before “Love You More.” Diggle’s “Autonomy” comes at you like WWII fighter planes on a strafing run. You can feel the crowd is ready to burst (pun intended) during the opening guitar hum of “Orgasm Addict” – one of the best punk tracks to ever come out of the UK. “Promises” is a great example of the way Shelley and Diggle could write punk love songs.

“When Love Turns Around” is another great example, this one of the way Buzzcocks can groove. “Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn’t Have Fallen in Love With)” is Shelley’s fiery rocker about heartache and sexual confusion, and they up the fuzz on this version. “What Do I Get” is a perfect follow-up, with Shelley claiming / demanding, “I just want a lover like any other. What do I get?”).

“Oh Shit!” is one of their fiercest flip-offs, and they come back on for an encore of “Fast Cars” (which, if you weren’t aware, they hate).

It’s over all too soon, but it’s still a lot of fun. Buzzcocks are still touring with Diggle in the lead since Shelley’s death. Catch them if you can.

Keep your mind open.

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Live: Frankie and the Witch Fingers and Acid Dad – The Brass Rail – Ft. Wayne, IN – October 08, 2021

This was my first time seeing psych-rockers Acid Dad live, and even hearing a lot of their material, and my third time seeing Frankie and the Witch Fingers in as many months. Acid Dad were just in the first few dates of their tour, and Frankie and the Witch Fingers were nearing the end of theirs. Both bands came to play and to play hard at Ft. Wayne’s Brass Rail – a great dive bar venue downtown where any band playing there is practically in your lap.

Acid Dad had the crowd jumping, and even moshing, before they were even halfway through their set. I liked their mix of psychedelic rock and post-punk and picked up their newest album afterwards.

Frankie and the Witch Fingers put on a killer performance as well, the best of the three I’ve seen. They upped the punk riffs in this one, and I’m starting to think it’s not an official show by them until their drummer is shirtless. They were also having a blast. They’re one of the most fun bands to see right now.

An official gig by Frankie and the Witch Fingers

Both bands will be playing at the Levitation Music Festival in Austin, Texas on Halloween weekend, and both sets will be well worth your time. Check them out.

Keep your mind open.

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Riot Fest 2021 – Day Four

No, you didn’t miss three posts. I only attended day four of Chicago’s annual Riot Fest this year, and it was the first Riot Fest I’d attended. A friend scored some free tickets, and far be it from me to pass up a chance to see Devo and The Flaming Lips on the same bill.

This was the hottest music festival I’ve attended in a long while. There was little shade to be had, but sunscreen and taking frequent breaks between sets meant not suffering too much. A freshly made fruit smoothie from a vegan food vendor did me wonders.

The first set we caught was by The Gories, who opened one of the main stages. They sounded loud and dirty, and I’d love to see them in a small venue, but I’m glad I finally got to see these Detroit punk legends.

We walked around Douglas Park and discovered the festival was widely spread out. Food vendors were in one far corner, while a smaller fifth stage was seemingly a half-mile away in the opposite corner. You’d think they’d wheel out some portable light posts with all that room, but no.

Up next were HEALTH, and one of my friends fell in love with them upon hearing their industrial set under sun so bright that their bassist / synth player had to cover his keyboards with trash bags so he could read the digital displays on them.

The sun wasn’t healthy if you weren’t wearing sunscreen that day.

After a nice break under a tree, we trotted over to the smallest stage to see Chicago noise rockers Melkbelly, who played a fun set that included a cover of Pixies‘ “Gigantic” in an attempt to make up for Pixies cancelling their tour this summer. They were so out of practice with performing live shows due to the pandemic that they forgot their merchandise in their van.

Melkbelly playing to a lot of local fans.

I scored some chicken tenders that were average at best while my friends scored an elephant ear. Riot Fest has carnival rides on site, and I can only imagine how many drunk attendees regret getting on them over the course of the weekend.

We returned to the Rebel Stage to see Bleached perform their first set in two years (according to them, and a running theme for live shows everywhere this year), right after a guy walked by us peddling mushrooms to anyone who wanted them. They sounded great, and I would’ve liked to have stayed for the whole set, but Devo was calling…

The stage was packed for Devo, complete with a mosh pit and crowd surfers. It was a fun set in which they played nearly the entire Freedom of Choice album. The whole crowd was happy and still buzzing afterwards. One guy was high-fiving people and telling them, “You just saw Devo!” It was the first time my friend, Amy, had seen them. She said she smiled so much during the set that her cheeks hurt afterwards. A delight for me and my friend (and Amy’s cousin), Brian, was getting to hear Devo’s cover of “Secret Agent Man” live for the first time. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to hear it.

Brian and I stuck around for the Flaming Lips‘ set. Brian hadn’t seen them before, and we couldn’t get close to the stage by they started – mainly due to them starting right after Devo’s set. It was still a good set, and nearly the same as when I saw them at Psycho Music Festival. Wayne Coyne encouraged everyone to take care of each other and stay healthy so live music can continue. Amen to that.

The Flaming Lips blowing sun-baked minds.

It was a good time (and Brian’s first music festival, no less), but would I go back? The short answer is, “I don’t know.” There were a lot of bad bands on the bill on day four, and I don’t think the other three days were much better. A lot of the bands playing the various stages sounded like Rage Against the Machine rip-offs, screamo nonsense, or pop-garbage. We got the hell out of there before Slipknot and Machine Gun Kelly started their sets and laughed as we passed a guy selling nitrous oxide balloons outside the park. I might return if the lineup gets better, and they’ve already announced another Misfits reunion for 2022, but Douglas Park-area residents won’t be happy about it…

Keep your mind open.

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