SLUG GUTS - "Down On The Meat" LP (Stained Circles)

  Every so often, I hear something so viciously compelling, that I can't help but shove it into the throats and ears of my pals, and their pals, and their pals' moms and dads pals,etc.So I would like to apologize ahead of time, for the seemingly endless, nonsensical ocean of hype I am about to poor into your sleepy eyes.Feel free to quit while you're ahead.Or not.
  A friend of mine,who's opinion i generally trust as far as new sounds go, dropped this giant pile of bricks known as Brisbane's SLUG GUTS onto my head a few months back, and not a day has gone by without at least a single track from this record being played somewhere that i am.At first glance of the cover, I see a group of skinny, semi-handsome introverts all posing in matching white dress shirts and black pants.Trivial, in today's climate.I wasn't too sure what I was getting into, but being a fan of most anything containing the word "guts", I popped it on in strict confidence that someone had given me something I'd like.What happened for the next 30+ minutes, was by far the most exhilarating and refreshing listens I'd had in quite some time.I was simply awestruck by this group from the first few notes.
  This beast of a record kicks off right with the title track "Down on the Meat", a woozy, whiskey drenched romp that was almost immediately showing signs of some serious Birthday Party worship, among other fellow Aussie creeps, like the awesome Bird Blobs.Thick, swanked-out guitar twang is soaked in so much reverb, it overflows from the speakers and quickly fills even the room you are in.Loose, eight-legged bass lines crawl up your back and steadily spin a sticky black web of low end rumble.A thin, unpredictable looking man is making you kind of uncomfortable, lurking off in the distance.He's ranting on about something questionable, in a voice that assures you he's been smoking five packs a day, for at least a hundred years now.There's a sturdy drum pounding away in hypnotic syncopation, and it's somehow tying all of these bizarre elements together, in the form of a song.
  Brash spaghetti-western soundtrack music gone south, way south.Post-punk has taken a dive into a prohibition-era back alley whiskey bust, and it's making a run for it.The vocals lie somewhere in between a trashier-yet-literate alter-Lemmy, after a long week of straight bourbon and non-filtered cigarette abuse, and a gruffer Nick Cave with a bit (more) of the strep throat.I heard a chomp or two of Old Time Relijun's wild front man in there,too.A total dry-throat, dead bullfrog-blues attack on the senses.The superbly dripping twang, supplied by their heavily treated guitar gallop will bring some pretty vivid images of tightly coiled rattlesnakes, cracked cow skulls, and swingin' saloon doors to mind, that is until they throw such a hard and unexpected sucker punch to your skull, that you will forget how you got here.Everything is cranked high, and right where it shouldn't be, ultimately making for a near perfect moonshine concoction.Slug Guts is like some kind of tragic accident gone horribly right.It's terribly inventive and strangely accessible.And the best part is, they actually kind of stole it.Fuck it.This can only get better.Watch for a new LP via Sacred Bones later on.
Check out the new songs on their Myspace page, they are pretty bonkers.

BRAVA SPECTRE - "Cuss Tongue" 7" (self released)

 
  Hot damn! CT's newest genre-benders -Brave Spectre, hit us with this mysterious little invention, in the form of a 7" single and they call it "Cuss Tongue".These two songs are some of the most inventive, smart,and driving tunes I've heard in some time.In a loose description, I'd feel pretty good about naming acts like Party of Helicopters, Volume Eleven, Raccoo-oo-oon, and other post-everything hardcore and punk acts of the late 90's.Toss in some killer,drawn-out psych jaunts,that tend to surface unexpectedly and you are pretty close.There are no gimmicks here whatsoever.They are an honest and talented bunch indeed.And as fresh as this may sound at first,there is something really cozy about this band.You will sweat you've heard this before,until it takes a thousand turns and turns your brain to jell-o.
  Side A kicks things off with some serious urgency.Wildly syncopated drum blasts propel some rather complicated guitar noodling, and they show us their ability to stop-n-start at any time almost immediately.My neck was sore within the first 20 seconds of listening to this,and there were a few "holy shit's" followed by some poor,but determined air drumming on my part.Both songs have a ton of parts, and both lean towards a HEAVY prog-rock influence, minus the symphonic synth-swells and 14 minute drum rapings(and 14 pc. drum kits..).Cuss Tongue is filled to the brim with sharp,technical riffs and mathy drum patterns that never seem to lose their stride,unless they are "accidentally on purpose".Brava Spectre seem to have a knack for writing quick and catchy melodies as well, and they like slipping them into their melodic-madness,and keeping their songs as calm and collected as they are chaotic and abrasive.A healthy and clever concoction.
 The vocals range from damaged shouting that is odd and catchy,to treated croons and hushed whimpering weirdness.It all seems to fit together nicely,no matter what seems to pour out of the dude's mouth.Their inventive sound collage definitely hold a slew of familiar elements,especially for the 30 something indie enthusiast.And I suspect that people with early Ebullition, Troubleman Unlimited, and Southern Records releases in their collection, are going to flip out over this.Goooood stuff.They have a new full length out on cd/cass as well..Get them both here: http://bravaspectre.bigcartel.com/

Critter Love: BEKO DIGITAL SINGLES LABEL

   Allow us a moment to tell you about one of our very favorite labels going right now,BEKO.
They are a digital only online singles label from France, and they are just wonderful.They add a new single every Monday,and they are totally free to download!There is quite an eclectic range of awesome sounds buried within their vast catalog,and their minimal,cohesive cover art is fantastic as well.Releasing everything from French pop to ambient noise, to cold wave, no wave and lo-fi bedroom projects.And that's just the beginning.Beko definitely has something for everyone,and no one.They just released two killer box sets called Beko Box 1 and 2.I suggest you head over to their site and get them ASAP.Then download everything else they have to offer.Long live Beko.
MJO

From The Vaults: RED WEDDING -"NAILS" 12 Inch EP (1984)

Red Wedding formed in L.A. around 1981.Nails is their second,and final release,following
the 1982 "Up and Down the Aisle" EP.Stumbling in and around Goth,Glam Rock,and Post-Punk,Red Wedding were a different breed altogether.The cliche of drugs,sex, and rock n' roll were a very real way of life for them.They worked hard and played harder,often burning the candle at both ends.Of course,this fast-paced lifestyle took it's toll on the band.Cursed with low budget recordings and production,as well as other studio complications,they still seemed to bang out some pretty amazing records.Although short lived,they made their presence quite well known in the early 80's L.A. punk scene.Check them out.

From the L.A. Times Music Review section,1984:

"What is Red Wedding?
A psychedelic-glam band? A techno-wave outfit? A hard-rock unit? On its new EP "Nails," the band defies categorization, offering effusively hallucinatory images grounded to a solid rock base, but there is something strangely retrogressive in the mad-professor synthesizer bubblings and Hendrix-like guitar roars. The sound is so hard to get a handle on it's almost perverse."
—Los Angeles Times
November 1984