Metal-moshin’ hardcore. I’m not sure if they’re from New York, but they sure sound like they are. Somebody somewhere will probably wet themselves over this, but I know I ain’t.
–jimmy (Too Damn Hype, PO Box 15793, Philadelphia, PA 19103)
Metal-moshin’ hardcore. I’m not sure if they’re from New York, but they sure sound like they are. Somebody somewhere will probably wet themselves over this, but I know I ain’t.
–jimmy (Too Damn Hype, PO Box 15793, Philadelphia, PA 19103)
Alternative rock/punk. I appreciate the fact that they’ve successfully set themselves apart from the pack, but the resulting music, while mildly interesting, just didn’t float my boat.
–jimmy (Motusk, no address)
As the utterly pretentious band name implies (it’s the name of a famous painting), this is art rock/noise. Musically it’s pretty solid, but the singer blows.
–jimmy (Satellite Transmissions, PO Box 4432, Boulder, CO 80306)
Jesus punk with ambiguous lyrics to help it pass for the real thing.
–jimmy (Boot to Head, Box 9005, Portland, OR 97207)
Politically oriented grind from Germany. It’s interesting to note that two of the members express their disdain for all the finger pointing and rigid rules of conduct within the hardcore scene in two essays presented on the lyric sheet. One of them, after just two years of active involvement within the scene, has apparently quit the band and wants
English pop a la the Smiths/Morrisey. Not bad for what it is.
–jimmy (Spinart, PO Box 1798, New York, NY 10156-1798)
After all these years, these guys can still play UK hardcore like nobody’s business. Fast, furious, and heavy as hell, this will definitely work better than coffee and a cold shower if you’re having a hard time waking up in the morning.
–jimmy (Vinyl Japan, 98 Camden Road, London NW1 9EA, UK)
This one was a bit of a surprise for me, ’cause I didn’t know what to expect. What I got was a nice mix of rock and various shades of jazz, with a hint of the Beatles, Stones and Caribbean rhythms thrown in as well. The songs themselves were fun and catchy, and served as a nice change of pace from the usual "noise" I listen to.
–jimmy (Sonic
Mid-tempo bar punk. The fact that the hooks are pretty darn catchy saves this from being chucked across the room.
–jimmy (NKVD, PO Box 60369, San Diego, CA 92166)
The name of the CD says it all: 65 minutes of death and grind from this long-lived outfit. The sound quality is high and the performance is as good as it gets. Puts my fears to rest about Metal Blade being bought out by the religious right, a fear put into my head following a slew of Christian metal CDs they’ve put out lately. With song titles
You get three up-tempo ravers for your buck here, kids. While the title track is a scorcher, I preferred the tracks on the B-side, "Party Girl/Cocaine County," which just seemed a little more deranged. Good over-the-top stuff from a group with a singer who sounds like Jon Wahl from Clawhammer.
–jimmy (Get Hip, PO Box 666, Canonsburg, PA
A strange mix of sounds here, kids. Sometimes they sound a little like the Replacements, sometimes a little like Iggy Pop, and sometimes they just go off on a weird tangent all their own. It’s a mixed bag for me quality-wise and I find that the songs work better the more abstract and reefer-addled they get. Nevertheless, I don’t think this would