11-6-08 Record Reviews

First up is a review of a bootleg re-release of the awesome 1977 Television Addict 7″ by THE VICTIMS.

I happened upon this while up in New York.

The only layout for this is The Victims printed on the front similar to the original (but of course on an actual cover nice and centered).  The track listings aren’t on the back though.  The labels are spot on to the originals though.

Television Addict is such a catchy song… you can listen to it again and again without getting tired of it.  This song is rawer and a little more edgier than most of the other Aussie releases of its time.

(I’m) Flipped out over you is a little more weirder and poppier.  It’s increadibly jittery.  It’s a fun song but doesn’t warrant the multiple plays that Television Addict does.

You can download the tracks from kbdrecords.com

Next Is INSTÄNGD’s Konkret Och Brutal 7″ on Adult Crash

Hopefully you’ve heard Instängd’s first 7″ on sorry state records.  If not then go get that first.

This 7″ is not as raw and trebley as the first one.  The first track Konkret Och Brutal is a killer.  The beginning reminds me of Black Flag’s Nervous Breakdown and gives that same feeling of anticipation.  A great beginning.  Once the song actualy breaks in it doesn’t let up.  This band does not lack intensity or energy in their recordings.  Känslokyka, the second track, has a rather weak beginning but once it kicks in it’s a great track.  The solo on it makes you want to just go crazy.  The side ender is Kött Är Mord which is quick and snappy. Side Brutal starts out with Moderna Korståg which is a little more hardcore.  This song isn’t one of my favorites.  Större Än Dig is a much more straight forward punk song it is more reminicent of the first 7″ but is still an awesome song.  The final song shares the name with the sorry state 7″ Mitt Svar På Ingenting.  This one isn’t as ripping fast as all the other songs and has a somewhat apathetic sound to it.  It’s not the best way to end everything but still it does give a feeling of closure.  Overall though this is a fucking amazing record.  This is definately a MUST HAVE.  So go buy it. NOW! Mach Schnell!

Up to bat now is Hjertestop from Copenhagen’s 7″ åårh, fuck…Der er Hjertestop! from the now defunct kick n punch records.

What a killer 7″.  This has to be one of the catchiest records ever.  The first song sticks with you and won’t get out of your head.  The riffs and vocals are both catchy as fuck.  Seriously you have a hard time taking this record off to put another on, you just want to flip it and play it all over again.  They were even nice enough to translate the lyrics into english.  I don’t need to go into every song except to say they are fucking amazing.  1-800-suicide-club will definately make you laugh with lyrics like “…or fucking a chicken and getting sars???”

This should be in everyone’s record collection.  Also I’ve heard the new LP out on Hjernespind and it’s possibly better than the 7″.  There is an american release of it coming out on No Way Records soon.  So while waiting for the american version of the LP go buy the 7″!

That’s about it for today.  I know those 7″s are a little dated but still I’m unemployed and haven’t bought new stuff in a while.  So go buy those three records if you don’t own them, I assure you, you won’t be dissapointed.

On an ending note watch this:

DEVOUR

So I decided to make a seperate blog strictly for Musical related posts.

 

First up a review/writeup of the new Devour LP on Sorry State Records.

If you don’t know Devour is the 2/3rds of Cross Laws that didn’t go to turkmenistan along with a couple of familiar faces from the Raleigh area.  On the LP they rip out 7 intense tracks.  The tracks have everything you would want, punk, hardcore, metal, it’s all there.  The whole thing is very thick and heavy with a dual guitar assault.  You can hear lots of japanese influence along with some crust/d beat and us hardcore bands(definitely a poison idea feel to some of the songs).  Lots of good time changes and ripping solos.  If you like any kind of heavy music you will love this band.

The Lp starts out with Not So Pleasant Valley, what seems to be a story of the average person, living only to work not making any connections with those around them.  The song ends with the lyrics “We’re All Boxed In” repeated several times and then ending on a trailing almost desperate sounding scream of “But WHY?”.  One of the more intense and powerful endings i’ve heard in a while, a definite Fuck You to fade outs.  I feel i need to comment on It Smells Like Piss In Here because the beginning of it is just pure power.  Seeing the beginning of this song live is an experience in itself.  There’s no way you can listen to it and not want to just bang your head along with the slow droning.  Then when the song breaks in at full speed it’s enough to snap necks.  The B Side starts out lo-fi and then with a crazy squeal of the guitar comes in full force into Crawling Out, which has been one of my favorite to see live.  The final song Useless Ruin is a good one because it ends in chaos, again a live show favorite.  If anyone happened to see Devour play at Bull City HQ with Government Warning then you probably know this song since it’s the one that resulted in Daniel’s Guitar being smashed and him running around while everyone else droned on.  It also led to the great picture on the front cover of the LP taken by Neal Mims.  On top of awesome songs the LP comes with other goodies. There are 100 copies which include silk screened covers, a giant foldout poster, lyrics sheet, a cd including the LP and a lot of bonus material, and a sticker.  All 100 are on white vinyl.  Go to Sorry State Records to get a copy.