VAGRANT

 

I suppose I could ask Nick because he's the one who sent me the tape, but: "what the actual fuckk is this and why am I hearing it for the first time tonight?!?!" In the world of raw, nihilistic, honest hardcore, bands like VAGRANT are a rare breed and this tapes like this should hold a special place in the conversation. The shit is just fukkn nasty, loose, wild....the shit sounds real and the shit feels dangerous. And if you're a punk, then these are things that you want when you're listening to punk. So tell me: Punk or Bootlicker? Just curious. Responses in the comments, please and thank you. 

VAGRANT

MAX NORDILE HAIR CLINIC

 

Unbridled improvisational glory. I have talked about the compulsion more times than I care to own, and yet here I am again consumed by the compulsion. I have a lot of things I want to do, a lot of things I think might be cool, a few things that other people might even enjoy (though mostly I'm concerned with the things that I think will be cool). And it's that last parenthetical that is really the point here - Max is doing this for Max. Everything I think about....? Max does. I have ten releases and/or projects in my mind and Max has put twenty into the Realms and is already thinking about the next.....thing. And the compulsion is what really compels me to keep listening. I am drawn to the sounds as much for the sounds themselves as I am drawn to the sounds for the concept of the sounds. I hope you can understand that because it's....well, it's kindof a big deal. Now, speaking of the sounds: Melting Garden Bed State Hatchery is unbridled improvisational glory. There are damaged synths, found sounds, discordant horns, manipulated percussives, alien electronics...it's 34 minutes of mystery presented as sound. It's listening to worlds you don't belong in. Worlds you don't deserve. Worlds you are grateful for. 

MELTING GARDEN BED STATE HATCHERY

SURAM

 

Four slabs of lo-fi bluesy stoner doom with some of the most desperate vocals you will hear this week. While the first sentence does a pretty good job of summing up Tanpa Kepastian, I feel it's worth noting how much the raw production and delivery adds to SURAM's appeal. Some bands rely on production, some bands don't need the production and still benefit from it. SURAM exist outside of it and the shit is filthy. "Alam Liar" is the choice cut - creating a space for themselves somewhere between BLUE CHEER and DOPETHRONE. You can try to figure out how they pull that off if you like, I'll just be here jamming. 

TANPA KEPASTIAN

INYECCION

 

I remember having a hard time putting INYECCION in a box that made sense when this bomber dropped a few years ago. By the time Porqueria came out I think the collective punk world had more or less figured out what do 'do' with them, but this demo was a complete head scratcher. You know the sounds - raucous Japanese pogo, Latin American anarcho/DIY hardcore and fierce UK punk are all here in spades - and INYECCION make it feel like you haven't heard them all together like this. Full force dupa-dupa with ferocious shrill vocals trading off with a sharp bark...and that guitar. GAI caliber sonic damage giving these riffs the fukkn business. I figure folks probably lumped them in with THE WANKYS and the like (right?) and they weren't wrong if they did. For me.....? I'm gonna lump them into their own fukkn world. 

INYECCION

JUST A PRODUCT

 I've shared a couple of JUST A PRODUCT demos before, and these songs also appear on the Free As A Tree demo so maybe one could argue that I don't need to share them here today. But some piece of shit yuppie didn't have to call SFMTA and have my van towed for blocking their driveway today....but they did it anyway. Here's the thing though; while you can not honestly argue that I actually blocked their driveway, you can certainly argue that these tracks are worth listening to (again). If ever there was a band that bridged '80s UK punk and '90s college/alt/grunge, then Bulgaria's JUST A PRODUCT is exactly that band. 

8 TRACKS

FOGBANK

 

This shit is fukkn nasty and after the weekend that just dominated my reality FOGBANK is precisely what I am looking for. Take S.H.I.T. caliber squirms then inject shirtless '80s Detroit energy and a healthy dose of ferocious Midwest basement hardcore and....well, FOGBANK are precisely what I'm looking for. "Fed Smoker" on repeat is all I want in my life today, and raw bombastic hardcore is what I need. Tomorrow I'm gonna start with "Marlboros And Molotovs" and then probably terminate existence. Because....why bother? Hardcore rules. 

[REDACTED]

FAMILY STONED

 

First off, FAMILY STONED is legit one of the coolest names I can remember hearing. Next....? FAMILY STONED are (still) one of the coolest bands I can remember hearing. Timeless early-(last)decade collage/alt on speed - hopelessly infectious and gloriously awkward except when they're perfect.  You ever hear something lazily described as "early '70 Ann Arbor meets late '80s Amherst with a tinge of sad drug addled college basement/alt" or do you read boring analytical descriptors? Just curious. "I'm not the man who wears the crown" sayeth the vocalist....and I couldn't agree more. 

DON'T BE ABOVE ME