PHEROMOANS - "My Mind Is On The Anti-Climb Paint" LP (Orec)

  It seems that just when I begin to wonder what's become of this band, they drop a brick-ton of new weirdness onto my head, and I spend the next few weeks trying to dissect it.Wedged somewhere between February's stunning "It Still Rankles" LP on Convulsive, and another up and comer LP on Red Lounge, "My Mind Is On the Anti-Climb Paint" is Pheromoans' most recent carnival ride put to tape.If you are familiar with this group, you will know that they come in a different form with each release, a musical variety hour of sorts, usually landing somewhere between beat poetry, improvisation and angular post-punk paranoia."Limited Scope 1 & 2" starts out as a loose, jazzy interlude, backing a rather bizarre two minute jaunt through straight-faced spoken word.Singer Russell Walker mumbles "Eye of the storm/I was always anticipating disaster" in a stern and distorted voice.Soon enough, the song does a total 180, and morphs into a bouncy, half-drunken stumble through choppy acoustic guitar scratching, and twisted story time rambling.Now this is starting to sound like the Pheromoans I know.The speedy thump of the kick drum, although purposely staggering off tempo at times, is the only thing keeping this song from completely falling apart, and that's just how they like it."Light Blue Faces" is one of the more tame and functional pieces of music on this record, with a sharp, fuzzed-out blues riff and hip-shaking tambourine that rattles somewhere off in the distance.This sounds kind of like Door and the Window trying to pull off a scrapped Byrds tune.Walker's tone-deaf rants bring to mind images of Johnny Depp as crown king of a blue-faced alien culture, and other strangeness.As the album pulls you in every direction imaginable, these boys run through a handful of weird vibes and topsy turvy genre-bending.They even manage to dabble in a bit of grunged-out heaviness, with the slow and unsettling crunch of "S.B.'s/Greece Theme".The lengthy album closer, and the creepiest of the bunch, "Conviction St. 1 & 2" is an uneasy tune, with lurker violins and half sung/half spoken downer vocal passages, teetering on a thin line between hope and hopeless.They take full advantage of the open spaces that they create, and there are plenty of them.You can feel that things are coming to end from the very first note, and things begin to sink.This record is full of fresh ideas, slightly humorous and blatantly risky moves, they never seem to stick any single theme, twisting all things familiar and safe about rock and roll.If you like your punk boundary-free, you will want to pick this up as soon as possible.Look for a new LP on Red Lounge sooner than later.

TEENAGE PANZERKORPS(DER TPK) - "German Reggae" LP/CS (Holidays/C.F.I.)

  For the last 10 years or so, Bunker Wolf and his Teenage Panzerkorps, otherwise known as DER TPK, have been churning out their own brand of demanding kraut-punk, and they have recently unleashed their latest opus, German Reggae.With two lp's, and a handful of ep's and singles under their belt, the boys have given us a fantastic new long player, and it's by far their best yet, in our opinion.Rarely do we judge a book, or record by it's cover, but this particular album cover speaks volumes about it's musical contents.I was pretty much blown away within the first two minutes of listening.

  German Reggae is chock-full of early post-punk rhythms and krautrock beat worship, pulling bits and pieces from these genre's most notable acts, such as Chrome, NEU!, Factrix, The Fall, and Savage Republic.But these are just a few the more obvious parts of this record, as each listen slowly reveals new tones and tiny melodies hidden within it's simple, yet potent layers.Wolf's vocals are delivered in a rather typical, stern TPK fashion, with amgered and spiteful shouts, like a goth tinged, German speaking Mark E. Smith.His commanding voice echoes amidst the dense walls of sturdy kraut-style percussion.Thick, grainy organs run wildly throughout the songs, and accompany the sharp and icy guitar jaunts quite nicely.The vintage production style gives the songs a nostalgic charm, with a mild mid-fi tone, and a bit of re-verb and delay are drizzled over almost every sound that is heard.
 
  Overall, Reggae.. clearly emanates a dark and foreboding minimalist vibe, but some of the songs also tend to lean towards pop-oriented, kraut-punk anthems, and keep the album's inventive charm buoyant and free of filler tracks or painful lulls.Abstract and unique, German Reggae is a fantastic record from start to finish.TPK's Tago Mago.Check it out.
 

NEW RELEASES VIA- AURAL PLEASURES OUT NOW!!!

The Aural Pleasures Label has two fantastic new cassettes out tomorrow!
APR-05 is a new full length cs from Oakland's TURRKS.With a handful of ep's, lp's and splits under their belts under the Bipolar Bear moniker, the boys return with another fine batch of songs, a new name, and some unexpected surprises along the way."Bisbee" is the name of the new album, releases on the Deleted Art label as a vinyl LP pretty recently.They've also got a great new 7" out on the Rococo label."Bisbee +" contains both of these awesome releases as one full length cassette album.Following the same tattered path as last year's killer "Harlem Pripyat" LP, Turrks continue to weave a lush and hypnotic web of crawling bass lines, mesmerizing drum patterns, thick walls of guitar noodling, and a well-treated vocal barrage.These new songs don't stray too far from their past efforts, but there's something here that is distinctively new and unheard on those past releases.Taking cues from early 90's math rock confusion, post-punk's low-end praise, and more than enough Monorchid and Jesus Lizard worship,respectfully, they have perfected their bizarrely catchy style far beyond expectation on this record.A fresh and revived take on their own craft,If you like to rock weird, check this one out for sure.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
 APR-06  comes to us from Philly's HOT GUTS.These boys have been generating quite a bit of clout in the last year or so, with their blog-adored debut 7" on Badmaster, an equally compelling split 7" with the awesome POP.1280, on the same label, and they are in the final stages of their debut full length, as you read this.Be excited.Their latest cassette, entitled "Secret Runners" takes quite a left turn from the Guts you have grown to love, and concentrates their efforts on much darker, brooding drones and delves deeper into goth and industrial territories.Fans of Chrome, Swans, Suicide, Coil, and Throbbing Gristle are going to melt all over this piece of plastic.Two of these tracks were taken fro their recent studio sessions, and two of them were captured live between 2008-2009.They are all unreleased as of yet, and will surely surprise current fans, as well as turn out plenty of new ones. On Runners, they've traded in their dense, heavy riffing, for some equally damaged analog synth blankness, and guitar dissonance fills the air just out of reach.Even the percussive assault they are known for has been morphed into pounding drum machines and electronic clutter of early industrial music, and no-wave harshness.The vocals have dropped a few octaves, and pair up with their instrumental approach perfectly.Churning out some rather dark content in the form of dull chants, and breathy croons.Definitely a giant step into the shadows foe them, and we are hoping that they will linger there just a bit longer, before totally flipping us upside down again.This is the real deal.

THE NATIVE CATS - S/T 7inch ( White Denim)

  This Tasmanian two piece start things off with a really dense, straight forward electro sounding electro beat, (not unlike those first shitty beats you made on the Fruityloops demo in '99,and then bragged to your friends about..) A simple and catchy enough bass line rides over top of it.Now It's starting to resemble something out of the early K catalog.It's kind of dark and cutesy, with just a bit of humor.. and doesn't really change at all for the next five minutes.The beat get's so redundant that you actually forget it's there at all once the monotone vocalswagger comes into play.Nothings changed yet.I can't be too sure, due to the vagueness of the few lyrics, but he keeps saying "once i was a little cat's paw, but that didn't last for long.." Which eventually grew on me, but the song lacks any real hooks or anything substantially awesome
to hang on to.A damn shame,too.
  The b-side is a much shorter track called "Lemon Juice" that gave me the same blank vibes as side one..It starts the same as "Catspaw", with a dull-yet-danceable drum machine that just repeats to no end.The semi-catchy bass line starts to do it's thing, and then the lucid, tuneless vocals begin to stumble over their own feet, and we're right back where we started.I will give them props on a spot-on cohesive record, i suppose.It's almost going into that awesomely minimal Young Marble Giants terrain, but the crispy clean production and lack of charm makes it fall pretty short of that.Dag!
I really wanted to like this, too.It's completely not awful, someone out there loves this to bits..just not something I'd come back to.So,if you dig the ultra-minimal, monotone rants-over-simple-electro-beats and bass guitar..this is your new favorite thing.Native Cats have an LP out too, and I really hope it's got more to offer than this single.
MJO

THE BARONIC WALL -"The Golden Sword/In Granite Parlor" Cassette (Night People)

   
Baronic Wall aka: Jack Gilbert,is my newest obsession.This tape is so fresh and inventive,I can hardly stand it.I really can't get enough of this.An overly-affected mix of sci-fi synth-punk and unhinged art fuckery.This shit is beyond damaged art,and this kind of musical mental abuse couldn't work any better for Gilbert.Minimalist-weirdo anthems that never let up.Golden Sword..kicks off with "Calibrant Memories".The delay-drenched shouting match immediately brings some early Throbbing Gristle to the mix,with it's  synth pulses,and dense,minimal electro-bumps.It's got a catchy kraut-like repetition to it,and their bizarre formulas seem to work very well from song to song,but some of these tunes rely solely on a single synthesizer note and Gilbert's intense P.Orridge-esque howl to carry them out.A fair amount of these songs flow towards a more lucid tone, that brings The Fall's more tender moments to mind.An insanely catchy and brave release from the elusive Baronic Wall,and they are just getting started.BAD ASS.

THE DOOR AND THE WINDOW - 5 track EP (NB Records 1979)

This killer EP is the second released by The Door And The Window, so cheaply recorded and pressed it makes the band’s LP, ‘Detailed Twang’ sound like Mozart on Deutsche Gramophone.No joke,this record is the very definition of lo-fi.Minimalist punk weirdness.Plain and simple.Do yourself a favour and check out all of their other projects,too.Minimalist brilliance.

Initially inspired by the ethos of diy pioneers like the Desperate Bicycles and Scritti Politti, Nag and Bendle played their first gig and recorded their first single quite sometime before they bothered to rehearse as TDTW. Playing with an ever-changing lineup the group became first gradually rhythmic and then melodic. Mark Perry became a third permanent member. Unhappy to remain in one seminal musical ghetto, they inhabited several – playing gigs with post punk and traditional ska bands, loads of free tours with idealist hippies and gradually becoming deeply involved with the London Musicians Collective, they also co-produced a magazine about the politics of record production, hosted the seminal “Jazz Punk Bonanza” Festivals of 1980, ’82 and ’86,and ran the weirdly eclectic Sprouts Conspiracy Cabaret Club.The venue birthed a handful of interesting acts along the way.Nag and Bendle also played in the 49 Americans and the Liberated Sound Octet, Nag played with Mark Perry and Karl Blake in The Reflections and Bendle with The Casual Labourers and the Late Music Group.Also check out The Cat & Bells Club-pre shadow ring- 7".Respect.

WETDOG - "Frauhaus" (Angular)

Angular Records is doing some killer releases lately.They've given us Frauhaus ,Wetdog's newest album.If you heard their 2008 debut,then you have an idea of what you are getting into.But the band's wiry post-punk brilliance has severely matured since then.It's quite amazing.This is surely going to be gravely overlooked and unappreciated,especially in the US.So let me tell you a little bit about it.


Frauhaus is likely to be described as something like "the bastard child of The Fall and Slits" or some shit..and it's absolutely true,to some extent.These songs are abrasive,fun,and full of eclectic energies.I am finding more influences in every listen.
Musically,the band reminds me of lost tracks from the Hex Induction Hour sessions,and they kinda bring the earlier Erase Errata albums to mind.Jagged guitars,are scratchy and slightly out of tune,banging out catchy riffs that don't always make sense.The bass rumble keeps it all from falling to pieces,with thick,repetitive lines that walk all over Hammond organ stabs that disappear,just as quickly as they've come into play.The interplay between this rhythm section is really kind of boggling at times.Chemistry.No shit.

The songs on Frauhaus possess a certain charm,that I think most of their current comparisons are lacking.There are some really amazing arrangements here,even if for a second or two.The vocal harmonies are nicely done,and keep the simple two note riffs fresh and interesting.There are plenty of yelps,hoots and howls all over the place,and while urgent shouts fill most of the album,they pull off some awesomely catchy chorus lines out of nowhere quite often.They will switch at the drop of a dime,and they will do it very well.Wetdog have grown into their bodies,and it doesn't at all seem forced or unnatural.

FUCKED UP,TORCHE,TRASH TALK,FORGETTERS PLAY SKATE PARK'S 17th ANNIVERSARY PRO PARTY-SHOW

March 12,2010 @ The Ritz (Ybor City)
The Skate Park of Tampa (SPOT) is having their annual bro-down.It's sure to be full of drunk-as-shit skaters,stoners,hipsters,total pussies,has beens,and local dinosaurs.If this thing doesn't result in 25 brawls over who's sporting the doper pair of Dunks,or who's got the raddest kick flip or whatever,then it should be pretty awesome.They usually have a ton of free kegs for your liquid courage,but I'm not sure about that this year,seeing as it's not at the actual park.
Canadian hardcore punk dudes/lady- FUCKED UP are headlining,and are sure to stir things up.Circle pits x 9.They are absolute sweethearts.Say hello to them.
TORCHE are bringing the weed and Sunn amps,in case you are "dry".This band is amazing live.Buy all of their records.FORGETTERS is Blake Schwappenzeitch from your ex-favorite bands Jawbreaker,Jets To Brazil,Thorns of Life,and has members of Gainesville's Against Me! and Bitchin'.I have never heard them,but they are getting a ton of hype in the jaded-old-dude scene.The kids are eating them up big time,too.I'm kind of stoked to see them.
Last but not least TRASH TALK,is also a hardcore-punk band,but I don't know much about them.Sorry for half-assing this.I'm in a hurry.
12 bucks in advance,15 day of show.
Starts @ 8pm.

LITTLE WOMEN - Teeth LP (Sockets)

Little Women are making some of the most dangerous and confrontational avant-jazz music out there right now.Teeth is a blown out,mind-melting treble attack from the start.The brass instruments are loose and layered,and yet played with intense precision."Teeth" teeters on a fine line between arrangement and anarchy,all the way to the end.Heavy on the free-jazz tip,stacked atop a pile of frantic drum blasts and angular guitar shred.It reminds me of the newer Zs(whom they share members with)recordings,but with more of a raw,brash tone.The hissy production value is mostly high end,barely ever reaching the low end of the spectrum.For Little Women,this is a good thing indeed.4 tracks of controlled chaos.Can't wait to see where they go next.Highly recommended!!

NAKED ON THE VAGUE - Blood Pressure Sessions [Dual Plover/Siltbreeze]

Naked On The Vague - Blood Pressure Sessions


"This two-piece Australian act, consisting of Lucy Cliche and Matt Hopkins, apparently popped into being simply from finding old, broken instruments. Now, if all the kids coming across battered organs (not mine, thanks) sounded this good, we'd be in business! And make no mistake, these kids are the business. 'Old Leader' is our introduction, as oscillating waves of synth warp across the duo's shared vocals, punctuated by distorted cymbal crashes. It's Gloom, alright, but Cureheads will get nothing out of this. This is distilled nihilism, filtered through the brain of a Scissor Girls groupie on downers. 'All Aboard' is the closest we get to a dance track, which is fine by me! "All aboard, the ship is sinking! Jump on the tracks, the train is coming!" Lucy spits, while a hypnotic keyboard line keeps pace with a simple drum machine beat. 'Mother's Footsteps' trots out the noise guitar and stuttering vocals, punctuated by shrieks, and 'The Horse, He's Sick' is psychedelic minimal with clanks and drones stumbling over themselves. 'Brown Sun/Sydney Lane Roads' is not quite an homage to the ol' hometown, unless they spend a good part of their time there with their mind a-reeling on drugs and liquor (and who's to say they don't?) 'Lonely Boys' has creepy warbling, with the duo turning themselves into human didgeridoos. Very Swans influenced, with a touch of that early Coil mind-jism. The jangly 'God Nor Devil', supported by teeter-totter guitars, snare the listener with steel cords. Mysterious and echoing, 'Blood Pressure' brings to mind barren, flat wastelands, echoing with thuds and wooden clatters. 'The Beach 2' transforms foghorns into synth lines, as the guitar trickles down into a mush of sound, becoming static and oscillating waves once more. This excellent little dark'n'nasty is one of two debut releases. Can't wait for the other!" - D.D.M.

FLIGHT:Not just a popular 90's Hi-top..

FLIGHT -st 10" on Kill Shaman

This dude is making some KILLER recordings,and deserves a shit-ton of honest recognition,rather than top-ten-list hype..He's also got a hand full of singles on various labels..more info on those soon.

Mississippi’s one-man band Flight is back with his second ever release, a self-titled 10″ EP on Kill Shaman. A perfect medley of 70’s glam, 80’s punk and 60’s psych, Flight applies a fist-pumping lo-fi pop sensibility that is over-distorted, punchy, and punk as fuck. Contains four distinct tracks that completely distinct and kills the inner ear. With the volume turned up to the max, this blown-out and distorted piece of wax will be sure to please any fans of Live Fast Die, Cheap Time, Jesus and Mary Chain and anything else that shreds while maintaining a deeply seeded sense of pop-punk. Think of it as the perfect medium for early 90’s fuzz-gaze and 70’s glam punk.
Tracks:
1. Over My Head
2. My Business
3. Unpredictable
4. Molly, Don’t Fade

TELEVISION PERSONALITIES "...AND DON'T THE KIDS JUST LOVE IT" (1980)

The first full album by Television Personalities, recorded after a four-year series of often brilliant D.I.Y. singles recorded under a variety of names, including the O-Level and the Teenage Filmstars, is probably the purest expression of Daniel Treacy's sweet-and-sour worldview. The songs, performed by Treacy, Ed Ball, and Mark Sheppard, predict both the C-86 aesthetic of simple songs played with a minimum of elaboration but a maximum of enthusiasm and earnestness and the later lo-fi aesthetic. The echoey, hissy production makes the songs sound as if the band were playing at the bottom of an empty swimming pool, recorded by a single microphone located two houses away, yet somehow that adds to the homemade charm of the record. Treacy's vocals are tremulous and shy, and his lyrics run from the playful "Jackanory Stories" to several rather dark songs that foreshadow the depressive cast of many of his later albums. "Diary of a Young Man," which consists of several spoken diary entries over a haunting, moody twang-guitar melody, is downright scary in its aura of helplessness and inertia. The mood is lightened a bit by some of the peppier songs, like the smashing "World of Pauline Lewis" and the "David Watts" rewrite "Geoffrey Ingram," and the re-recorded version of the earlier single "I Know Where Syd Barrett Lives," complete with deliberately intrusive prerecorded bird sounds, is one of the most charming things Television Personalities ever did. This album must have sounded hopelessly amateurish and cheaply ramshackle at the time of its 1981 release, but in retrospect, it's clearly a remarkably influential album.Click the header above to download the full album.
[allmusic.com]