I had almost given up any hope. It seemed that Führers of the New Wave had gone deep underground in the early ‘00s. Sure, they appeared for a show here or there, but where were the vinyl transmissions? We need our Orders From Headquarters! When I least expected it, there it was. The call to arms that all the Smog City Wavers were waiting for. Word came that our beloved Beach City Butchers were coming back. Not only that, but the new orders would be released courtesy of the hottest label going right now. Anticipation was off the charts! After more than a decade, what was a couple more months, right? It seemed like eternity I tell you! As I wait for my special surf waxed LP, Razorcake HQ took pity on me and hit me with the CD. The time had come. The return of the mighty Smogtown! Let me preface this with an opinion on reviewing a Smogtown record. It is tough when a debut record comes out and is as mind blowing as Führers Of The New Wave was. Everything you do after that is destined to be compared to it. In Smogtown’s case, that’s not really fair. Sure, all the songs on that record are amazing stand-alone tunes, but it’s the way they go together that makes it one of the best California punk rock records ever. That said, the singles, and Domesticviolenceland are also phenomenal! Does Incest & Pestilence fit in? Just fine. The boys come back at us with another twelve blasts of audio turmoil that reveal more tales of the California façade. Behind the sun and glitz, the paint is peeling and the real problems in society are starting so show through. While the rest of the world seems to fall apart around us, Chavez and the boys are still telling it like it is. The creepy saxophone skronk of “Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing” is new, and somehow fits in. If it’s not apparent already, Smogtown are one of my favorite bands. They came out with both guns blazing and never really got their due last time around. I’m glad to see them sticking to it. SuburbanBeachCity just got dangerous again
–ty (Modern Action)