Acid Baby Jesus, “Selected Recordings” LP

cover - acid baby jesus selectedAcid Baby Jesus‘ last proper full-length, 2011’s LP was kind of a hodgepodge of ’60s rock tropes. There were sludgy stompers, flower-power psych jams, and jangly bouncy things. It was fun, but never quite got into regular rotation the way their “Hospitals” single had originally hooked us.

In the meantime, they did a teamup with Hellshovel for the Voyager 8 EP, which was fun, but never really gelled the way I wanted it to. The two bands seemed to be doing their own things simultaneously, rather than finding a joint sound together, which really kept otherwise-agreeable numbers like “I Went Down” from clicking.

So, why should you listen to their upcoming full-length, Selected Recordings, out November 17 from Slovenly Recordings?

Because it’s amazing! It’s been a solid two years since the band’s released anything of note (not counting the “Vegetable” single they released in advance of this back in September), and they’ve changed, but in a good way. The whole psychedelic rock thing is 100% in the forefront. The album manages to remain thematically and tonally coherent, while also playing around with tempos and textures.

A big part of the problem with LP was that it sounded like a collection of singles, but Selected Recordings sounds like an album (although the names seem to suggest otherwise — weird). Acid Baby Jesus remains the band they once were. You can hear echoes of LP in this new album — “I’m Becoming a Man” rocks that dirty fuzz the same way “Tomboy” did, and “Row By Row” echoes the stomp and freakout of “Tyrannosaurus Rex.”

Also, in addition to just being recorded more coherently, Selected Recordings is sequenced in such a way that the album flows, rather than jumping from B to X to G to V to Z. By the end, you feel like you’ve journeyed down the river of Lethe, and things are groovy and all right.

https://soundcloud.com/slovenly/acid-baby-jesus-selected-4

Four new Slovenly singles from The Anomalys, PUFF!, Thee MVPs, and Useless Eaters

Three upcoming singles from Slovenly Records, as well as one (PUFF!) on their new imprint, Mondo Mongo. These all came into my inbox at the same time, so they’re all getting reviewed simultaneously. Each review was limited to a certain amount of space, and I kept to that, in the interest of brevity.

THE ANOMALYS -Deadline Blues- EP - coverThe Anomalys“Deadline Blues” b/w “No More!”

Ignore the a-side, which is pretty rote, even though there’s a nice reverb on the guitar tone. The vocals are so high up in the mix as to irritate, especially given the tone-deaf delivery. The crazed drumming and insistent background vocals on “No More!” make it the far more interesting track on here. It’s frantic and the surf bridge makes it completely danceable. You can freak the fuck out on that one.
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Stalins of Sound, “Tank Tracks” LP

cover - stalins of soundMore dirge-like than the Spits, less poppy than Devo, and more abrasive than Digital Leather is Stalins of Sound. Their Tank Tracks LP — out next week on Slovenly — took a few listens to really grab me. However, despite the slow build up to acceptance, some tracks immediately interested upon first listen.

“Monkeys Attack” is insistently metronomic in its rhythm, and the guitar just buzzsaws along. I featured it on the podcast a few weeks back, and the more I listen to it, the more I get what Stalins of Sound are trying to do. Granted, it’s pretty indicative of what Tank Tracks sounds like. The earlier tracks follow that pattern, and if you’re only half-listening, it’s difficult to tell some songs from others.
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Hobocop, “Half Man, Half Cop” 10-inch

cover - hobocopHobocop‘s Half Man, Half Cop is just the right amount of lo-fi. It’s not quite as rudimentary as Apache Dropout, but it’s fuzzy and dirty. The fuzz and distortion works with the music, though, rather than obscuring good songwriting. “Stench of Death” especially benefits from some extra dirt on its sludged-out garage guitar. The whole lo-fi aesthetic gives everything a sense of mystery — is that keyboard or a weird guitar effect? Is that an acoustic bass or a weird guitar effect?

The element of mystery makes the whole Hobocop thing entertainingly strange. You’ll accept the fact that “Fairweather Scum” is remarkably catchy, despite the fact you’ve little-to-no idea what’s being sung. Just lock onto “yeah yeah”s and “whoo-hoo”s whenever possible, and use those as your guideposts to take you from mumbled guesses to enthusiastic and confident sing-along.
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New Coke, “Duct Tape Your Mouth” 7-inch

cover - new coke duct tapeThe latest from New Coke isn’t as deliriously weird as their first single. Can anything be as uncomfortably wonderful as “He Got Stabbed In the Throat”? I humbly submit the answer be, “No – no fucking way.”

Granted, the Duct Tape Your Mouth EP is still pretty uncomfortable — it isn’t as delightfully weird as its predecessor, but it’s still super-uncomfortable. The title track is a strangely catchy tale of home invasion and hostage situation and (like the other two tracks on this single) suitably jittery and edgy.
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PYPY, “Pagan Day” LP

cover - pypyPYPY‘s debut release, Pagan Day, has the unfortunate timing of coming out after Savages’ Silence Yourself. It’s all too unfortunate that it’s going to be compared to that bit of disco-tinged post-punk.

This is, however, a less focused release than that, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Pagan Day meanders and engages in psychedelic freakout workouts, making the moments when PYPY focuses that much more intense. There’s a lot of build-and-release on this album, and it makes for an involving listen.

“New York” will just work a dance bassline for a good half minute before turning the burbling, underwater guitar into pointed riffs, simply exploding from your speakers. You’ll be nodding along, then suddenly rocking out, thrashing about the room, like you’ve been possessed by a fucking demon.

Then, of course, the song following it, “Molly,” is a pretty standard psych-rock number. Guitar solos all over the place, flanged vocals, and an end that doesn’t so much build as collapse upon itself. It’s the sheer unpredictability of PYPY that makes Pagan Day such a fantastic, intriguing listen.
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Missing Monuments, “Blast!” 7-inch

cover - missing monuments blastConcluding our week of power-pop this week, we’re looking at another release from Slovenly Recordings — in this case, the newest single from Missing Monuments, due out on 7-inch on November 26. With releases on Dirtnap, HoZac, and Douchemaster, it only seems logical that King Louie would eventually find his way to the Reno label, renowned for their discerning tastes in garage and punk.

The title track, “Blast!” is a stomper. The guitar line cycles around and around, while the drums pound and pound, with a harmonica bleating out on top of it. Louie’s vocals are harsh and shouted, making this the punkest blues you’ve heard outside the Gun Club. It’s tough as nails.
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Nightmare Boyzzz, “Bad Patterns” LP

cover - nightmare boyzzz bad patternsOh, man — can power-pop be the next big thing in underground rock ‘n’ roll? We got the ball rolling with the Exploding Hearts, Missing Monuments, and Mean Jeans, but it hasn’t seemed to become a “thing” like lo-fi, shitgaze, or whatever. However, given that we’ve got the #1s getting released in the states, and this Nightmare Boyzzz LP hitting about the same time, I’m hopeful.

Bad Patterns, out in two weeks on Slovenly Recordings, is truly wonderful. I’ve been returning to it more and more over the last week or so, and with each listen, I find something new to like about it. Granted, it’s not like these Huntsville boys are breaking out for new territory with this release. It hearkens back to quite a few other artists, taking pop-punk’s energy and the bouncy guitar rhythms of glam, and merging them with any number of early ’80s acts that came on the heels of the Buzzcocks and the Undertones.
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Podcast #102, “In Advance Of”

comingupThere are times where I wish I’d just use all of the outtakes to the show, just so you can see how utterly amused I am by myself. It gets a little silly down here in the basement sometimes — there are things I say and do that leave me utterly in stitches. Additionally, I feel Like I should let you know what i listen to as I type up these previews as the podcast encodes. Currently: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ Damn the Torpedoes. I’ve not had a copy on vinyl in the decade I’ve been in possession of a decent turntable, and it’s astonishing how much better it sounds than any of the innumerable singles when they’re on the radio.

All ranting aside, we’ve some great music from Slovenly Recordings, amongst others, to say nothing of an interview with Rick Miller of Southern Culture on the Skids about the upcoming three-way split double LP they have with Los Straightjackets and the Fleshtones. It comes out October 1 on Yep Roc, and is entitled Mondo Zombie Boogaloo. You can find tour dates and order the record at Yep Roc’s site.

Podcast #102, “In Advance Of”
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Wau y Los Arrrghs!!!, “Todo Roto” LP

cover - wau y los arrrghs todo rotoMy day job requires a healthy amount of time in front of computer, so I spend a good portion of my time in the office listening to music. New albums, day after day after day. It’s a great way to start to draw conclusions. Firstly, the new album from Wau y Los Arrrghs!!!, Todo Roto will likely sell far fewer copies than the newest release from King Khan and the Shrines, Idle No More.

And, I mean … it’s fucking great and all that Khan’s back, and the story behind why it’s been a six-year wait for a new album is absolutely fascinating. However, after the entirety of the Shrines’ output, Idle No More just seems like a letdown. It’s a better album than most, but for a recording from King Khan and the Shrines, it’s fucking dullsville.
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