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Record Reviews
- February, 2000 American Heartbreak "Postcards From Hell" CD
Antidote "My Life" CD Loud,
fast and fucking punk rock Netherlands style! Antidote sound like Oxymoron
and GBH in a blender! Here's some pogo punk with a violent temperament
and a bad attitude. This is pogo punk rock to the max for all the
bondage punks out there. 20 tracks including, "Let's get Drunk"
and "Waste of Time". (JD) Blood For Blood/Hudson Falcons 7" Blood
For Blood are a hardcore band outta the streets, hmm... They're good for
a hardcore band, but overall fairly inanimate. They do, however, cover
the Wretched Ones' "Going Down to the Bar" very poorly. On to
the Hudson Falcons, another routine street punk band singing about working...
I wish I could remember the second song but I fell asleep! (JD) Booked "Feel The Pride" CD Yeah,
I'm feelin' somethin' alright... The Booked appears to be doing the whole
working class, street punk thang on this disc. They kick it up a bit with
songs like "The Union" and "Strike Against Corporate America".
However, they fall short on keeping my attention for more than five songs.
It's like beating a dead fucking horse; I get it, working, yeah. If I
had to compare 'em I'd say Anti-Heros; the Anti-Heros blow these guys
outta the water, so. (JD) Busted Lives "Leave Me Where I Lay" CD
Clone Defects "Scissors Chop" 7" This
A-Side is vexing; it's just a bunch of noise. Ah, there we go. The Clone
Defects are so much better on the B-Side. I'm hearing the Pagans, Stooges,
and all of that snotty, dirty rock 'n' roll that is associated with the
mid-western part of the USA. The Clone Defects' guitars are ferocious
and I'm demented for their spiteful lyrics! This 7" is why I still
fucking love rock 'n' roll! There're 3 songs here including a classic
in the making, "15 Minutes Long". (JD) Coyote Men "Headin' for Trouble" LP Here
are the Coyote Men! This is the Italian release of Estrus' "El Mundo!"
CD. Now, for all of Italy to hear, the Coyote Men have reached the overseas.
These suave wrestling fans will lure you to the garage with their rad
rock 'n' roll. Fuck it all and buy their records bitch! 15 songs here,
including "Loopey Lopez" and "Until I get you". (JD) Demonics "Formeldahyde Injection" LP This
is the vinyl version of the Man's Ruin CD. These guys make the Gotohells
look pretty stupid. Similar gear-head rockin' punk, mit gusto, lots of
racing sound effects and such. Aha! If the Long Gones were more together/pounding
and wrote catchier tunes, they'd be the Demonics. This is about as original
as... ah fuggit, there ain't much original shit out there. This rocks,
and I've spun it a hellova' lotta' times since I got it. This is typically
great artwork from Alien Snatch, probably the best of the lot. (TK) Frustrators "Bored in the USA" CD
Havenot's "Kids All Right" 7" The
Havenot's kick so much ass it's absurd. What's with the apostrophe? It
must have been that feeble death metal band over in Europe that got their
panties in a bunch because they had the same band name, fuckers. The valuable
Havenot's are basically a cross between the Ramones and Teengenerate.
It's great! You have the catchy guitar chords of the Ramones combined
with the fuzzed out recordings of Teengenerate, two of my favorite bands.
This 7" will most certainly get your booty shaking. If you have any
common sense at all you'll pick this up. Only two songs, but it goes great
with their full length. (JD) Highschool Rockers "Danger" 7" Part
1 in German label Alien Snatch's "Teen Trash Series." Makes
me misty-eyed for the early Rip Off lo-fi trash. A few years ago, this
stuff came out every time you blinked, not anymore. Sounds like Loli &
the Chones' "Straightjacket Baby" 45, if that helps. Side A
kicks the crap outta' Side B. 600 copies, 4 tunes. If you have any interest
in the genre, this'll be just what the doc ordered. (TK) Hookers II "Black Visions of Crimson Wisdom" CD/LP The
Hookers have returned from the depths of Hell and released their sophomore
album. As expected, they've lingered with their metal framework. This
time however, Adams vocals have more of a Glen Danzig savor to them. This
record is even more overproduced than their last. Unless you take pleasure
in hearing those metal bands of the 1980's, you won't appreciate this
CD. 11 songs are on this disc, including "Black Magic Stallion"
and "Hell Bent". (JD) Huntingtons/Darlington "Split" CD Knockout!
A suitable pop punk release. The Huntingtons sound like their from the
Queers "Move Back Home" era. A time where many pop punk, Ramones
influenced bands actually sounded good! The Huntingtons give you 8 hook
laden pop tunes including, "Judy Jetson" and "Glue Sniff
Death Shocker". Darlington, another good Ramonesy punk band, are
totally digging the pop. Get hip to the catchy tunes from these lonely
boys. Heh, I can't believe someone actually wrote a song about Donna A!
You the drill. (JD) Intensity "Virtue of Progress" 7" This
is fervent early hardcore, plain and simple. There's no showboating or
inadequate attempts to act like tough guys here, just great hardcore the
way it was meant to be played. Intensity are very domineering and full
of energy. Plus you get 7 fucking songs here! Anyone who can fit 7 good
songs on a 7" gets my pick. (JD) Johnnies "12 Steps to Nowhere" LP I'd
heard quite a bit about this Boston band, but never heard 'em. Great lyrics
(how many bands would actually sing "I wish I WERE drunk" in
the proper tense? Somehow, this is significant to me) and funny as hell.
Kind of a mid-to-slow tempo pop rock band--- they have elements of pop
punk, but they add rock 'n roll guitars and never fall prey to the "one-two-one-two"
drumming or borin' Ramones-esque guitaring. The only other band I can
think of right now doing similar shit would be the Stiletto Boys, but
that still doesn't really hit the mark. I dunno, if well crafted but rockin'
tunes with cool lyrics are yer bag, eat up. I'm liking this more w/ every
listen. Oh--- the vinyl & thick cardboard sleeve make for a single
LP thicker than "Sandinista," and you get a poster and a 20-page
booklet in the deal. (TK) Midnight Evils "Powerhead" 7" Saw
this Minnesota band a few weeks ago, and thought they were real players
in the dying/dead Speedealer/Zeke dumb-guy rock arena. Liked 'em quite
a bit. I opted to buy beer instead of their record, but when I saw it
in the store the other day I snatched it up. Damn, the song on the A Side
is a leaden misshapen piece 'o shit thud rocker. The original on the B-side
is pretty decent, and the Standells cover ("Riot on the Sunset Strip")
is an OK treatment of a much-covered classic. Eh, I'm not sure if they
weren't as good as I thought at the time or if they just need the right
studio treatment. They get one more shot from me. (TK) Mooney Suzuki "Your Love Is A Gentle Whip" 7"
Oddballs Band "Last Bullet Blues" 10" The
first thing you need to know about any Alien Snatch release is that yer
getting amazing packaging. The LPs are thick slabs of vinyl, and the EC-inspired
artwork is simply great. These guys inhabit space between 80's style re-creation
of the blues/early rock and the 90's fuck-with-yer-roots shit--- think
Neckbones & the like. While they don't quite have the personality
of the Neckbones (perhaps the most sadly-unappreciated band that's been
kicking around for a while), this is mega-cool supercharged roots
damage that gets better every time I listen to it. I'd love to see these
fuckers live. (TK) Quadrajets "When The World's On Fire CD/LP Alright
fuckers... The new Quadrajets record is out! This is rock 'n' roll in
overdrive, balls out wailing, lotsa guitars, Punk 'N' Roll with some power!
Yeah, full on, punk rock shit! Anyone into the heavy sounds of Zeke will
love these guys. 11 songs including, "Light Speed Kings", "The
Tomb of Johnny Reb." and "Fly On". (JD) Registrators "Sixteen Wires From The New Provocate" 2XLP/CD
Rocket From The Crypt "Dancing Birds" 7" Wow,
these dudes are still alive? Well, it's more of the same from RFTC. They
have this horn section in their songs that I particularly didn't enjoy.
Still, they can rock out with the best of them, when they want to. Two
songs including "Black Eye" for super fans only. (JD) Rock 'N' Roll Stormtroopers "Hanging Out With the Boys" 7" I've
heard some good things about these guys, so I had to check 'em out. They
aren't bad, though I don't see what the hype is all about. The R'N'R Stormtroopers
have a 70's pop punk feel to their music. They can write some catchy tunes
along with a speck of wanking on the guitars. But overall, nothing electrifying
to my ears. This is an average release with three standard pop punk songs
including, "I Love It". (JD) Screeching Weasel "Thank You Very Little" 2XCD Two
CDs only a Screeching Weasel zealot would desire. These records contain
over 50 tracks of b-sides, comp. tracks, demos, and more from '86-'99!
There is a lengthy letter from Mr. Weasel depicting all their demented
mishaps that go along with these songs, how generous of him. I would recommend
this to someone who is curious about Screeching Weasel's pop punk and
hardcore punk roots. Some cool songs include, "I wanna be a homosexual",
"Jeanie's got a problem with her uterus", and 50 more, I guess.
(JD) Submachine "Fresh Out of Give-A-Fucks" CD I
can't believe these fuckers are still around! Amazing, I haven't heard
these boys since their split 7" w/ the Pink Lincolns. OK, most of
you should be familiar with Submachine; they have been around forever.
This is your fundamental 80's hardcore punk. They're very aggressive and
accelerated punk rock. There are a lot of heavy guitars, screaming, and
breakdowns; the fun part of hardcore. Submachine are nuts so check 'em
out. Hey, 19 songs, including "Mind Your Own", "Fight",
and "TV Preacher". (JD) Supersuckers "The Evil Powers of Rock 'N' Roll" LP/CD Hey!
The Supersuckers are back babeez! Maybe I'm alittle late here, but I'm
talking about the rock 'n' roll blasts straight from Hades - - The Supersuckers!!
I'm talking about their heavy roaring guitars and sweet seductive melodies
that will get your head bopping motherfuckers! Punk Fucking Rock 'N' Roll
that will soon be a classic in the hearts of many. 13 songs including,
"Cool Manchu" and "Dirt Roads, Dead Ends, and Dust".
(JD) Truents/Suburban Crisis 7"
TV Killers/Temporal Sluts split 7" French
monsters the TV Killers & Italy's best unit since... umm... Hitler
SS? I dunno'. Anyway, they do the thing where they cover each other's
tunes, plus one original. Been done hundreds of times, but w/ these two
it's alright w/ me. I like the Sluts a little better (maybe it's the Leaving
Trains song-title-fer-band-name deal?) because they rock the punk where
the Killers punk the rock. Either way, a cool thing to track down if'n
you can find it. (TK) Wretched Ones "We Don't Belong to Nobody" CD Most
of the Wretched Ones material never thrilled me. They're good, don't get
me wrong, but it just doesn't stick to my brain and make me wanna listen
to it over and over. These legends in the oi/street punk field have decided
to give it another go, who am I to oppose them? As for all you WO fans,
you will be overflown with satisfaction when you hear their newest installment;
even I noticed my head boppin' to such classic tracks as "Welcome
to the East Coast", "Rules", and "Dead Man Working".
(JD) Zeke "True Crime" CD/LP So,
you can't find all those old Zeke records that are way out of print. You
poor distressed little punk rocker, don't fret, Dropkick Records has just
saved your ass. I hope your happy, 16 blazing tracks of early Zeke! These
fuckin' non-stop rock 'n' roll furies are the shit! This is a great compilation
and has all the chart toppers like, "Fight in the Storeroom",
Schmit Valu Pack", and "Overkill". Yesss, it is sooo sssweet...
(JD) |
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©
blankgeneration.com 2003 |
Rock
stardom and MTV spring to mind while I listen to this CD, I can't help
but not dig their sweet, candy-coated songs. American Heartbreak thrust
thick power chords down your throat and sprinkles pop melodies for added
pleasure. They keep their tunes tight and short, and have obviously spent
a lot of time with these songs ironing out the wrinkles. There's thirteen
tracks included on this CD such as, "White Girl", "Please
Kill Me", and "Seven Time Loser". Trash! Pick it up! :)
(JD)
I
wanna die! Yeah! The Busted Lives are a conspicuous rock 'n' roll trio
in retrospect to the Drags and Los Ass Draggers! These boys are raunchy
little perverts looking for some action, so you better give it to 'em!
There's 12 tracks here including, "40 Fuck Me" and "I Wanna
Be Dysfunctional". I am motherfuckin' dig this shit and you should
to! Go garage or die! (JD)
The
Frustrators are a pop punk/rock 'n' roll foursome. They start the CD off
with a decent song called "I slept with Terry", so I was excited
to hear some more. To my dismay, I found the other 7 songs to be quite
attenuated and boring. They know how the play their instruments but don't
know how to write solid songs. Overall this was a poor CD and probably
would have gone over better in 7" format. (JD)
These
guys are cool. They have kind of a 60's garage thing going for 'em. The
guitars remind me of early Makers but the vocals sound like fuckin' Devo,
that's the one thing that sounds confusing on the record. If they got
a better guy on vox they might prove formidable in the garage scene. Three
tunes including "Turn My Blue Sky Black". (JD)
Aww
jesu... Wha... Fu... Oh what a world... What a world! The Registrators
new record sucks! First, the emo cover, what the fuck? Second, these backing
vocals are so high-strung and annoying! Third, they're slaying their classic
punk tunes like "TV Hell" and "Automatic Exit". Oh
man, at times I think to myself, "Self, is this Meatloaf?" Oh
fuck, I have a headache! (JD)
The
Truents are from NYC. The singer is a real cool guy. His band however,
ain't so hot. The Truents aren't dreadful, but they aren't what I'm looking
for in a street punk band. They need more power and rowdiness in their
tunes. Moving on, Suburban Crisis saves this 7" from being a dud.
They pick it up with some toe-tapping pogo punk! They're fast little fuckers
and can rip shit up. There are 4 songs as total here. I'd see 'em live
if I could. (JD)