Ex- Breathers - Collision

Band request from Florida.

Ex-Breathers are a three piece who play "hardcore punk
from planet Z"!

I am digging the mix of hardcore, punk and some elements
of noise-rock on display here. There is an element of
controlled chaos with raging riffs that are scattershot
played over the intense rhythm section.

The recording has a live powerful sound which makes
these tracks really stand out. Post-hardcore song
arrangements stomp their caustic beat at a fair old speed
while the vocals are shouted and urgent but clear.

Ex-Breathers have really got a fucking great sound
going on here - kinda like Poison Idea covering Botch!

Highly Recommended!

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Lords of Bastard - Cuddles

I am not sure what the title refers to but I do not want these

fuckers giving me a cuddle.

Lords of Bastard occupy the sonic hinterland that is occupied 

by mutant acid-dropping bands that combine noise rock

with lashings of sludge.

This album has a huge, dense sound that stomps over your

sensibilities and punches you in the throat. The vocals are

quite low in the mix and fight to be heard over the pounding

riffing and Am-Rep rhythms, giving the songs a dark tension

that builds within the song passages. Keyboards add a

layered dimension and a sinister atmosphere more creepy than

watching re-runs of Jim'll Fix It.

There are elements of chaotic free-form structures running

through the tracks but never distracting enough to make you

forget the huge, heavy riffs that are always present.

I like this a lot - give it a listen.

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Kabul Golf Club - Le Bal Du Rat Mort

Band request from Belgium.

(Many thanks to Jan for CD)

Kabul Golf Club are here to assault your ears with some

post-harcore and noise rock. Discordant timings and abrasive

guitar riffs litter the songs with a reckless abandon, you can almost

hear the strings breaking under the duress they are receiving.

The 5 tracks here are wonderfully chaotic but do not lose

any aggression in the process. Filthy basslines throb in tandem

with the drums, giving the guitar a platform to wail, feedback

and groan like a mutant Hendrix raised on noise rock. 

The despairing vocals add another layer with yells, screams

and general gibbering craziness. This is a killer EP that I highly

fucking recommend! This will be a hard one to beat.

If you are interested in ATDI, Botch, Jesus Lizard etc, check this

out - Buy Here

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PsychicEyeClix - Let Rule then Kill (2012)

Request from Doubledgescissor>8> record label. I am convinced
that Damian only sends me his records for reviewing to laugh at
my bewilderment in a genre that I am vastly under-prepared to
comment on!

It starts off with white noise ............... which morphs into a rhythm
.......... very loud ........ bowels are starting to feel uneasy ...... samples
are lobbed into the mix, it sounds likes snatches of political speeches ........
or is that John Lydon? .......... fluid electronic glitches pulse like snakes
through my cortex ........... disjointed drums flow like drugged pigs running
downstairs ........... and then .............. I realise it is making some sort
of fucked up sense ........... my feet are stamping to unexplainable riffs .........
the chaos you first hear is slowing morphing into songs ............ how can so
much noise be made without guitars .......... eat through the sound 
of reason .............. I get to the end of the album and feel as if I have been
brain raped .............. but as I continue to quietly cry in the corner,
 I cannot stop myself from playing from the start again!

If the Butthole Surfers started a band today but only used electronics, this would
be pretty much the sort of fucked up shit they would produce.

Highly recommended.

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Jethrine - Wildlife EP

Band request from Portland, USA.

Jethrine are taking a hiatus but on the strength

of this EP, should get back and do some more

recordings!

This is prime punk/noise rock which gleefully

takes the AmRep template and runs amok. The

rhythm section have the technical chops to pull

off the dizzying time tempos and staccato song

structures that make this sort of thing so thrilling

but still have a looseness that sounds like a band

playing on the edge of chaos.

Vocals get yelped in the best Yow/Mackaye style

which suit the strangely bizarre/imaginative lyrics.

There is also a tasty Roky Erickson cover.

Abrasive and energetic, Jethrine join the ranks of

newer bands like United Sons Of Toil, White Drugs

and We'll Go Machete who are doing their own take

on this genre.

Listen

Because they are good guys, there is a free download from Bandcamp

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My Album Of The Year - Rational Animals (2011)

This has only been out for two months but "Bock Rock Parade"

by Rational Animals is such a killer release, it is my album of

the year.

With a hardcore sound that is influenced by the later Black Flag

sound and Greg Ginn guitar freakouts in particular, they also

avoid the standard verse/chorus by using AmRep type noise rock

song writing and melodic structures - all of which gets my head

pouding with excitement - it is not rooted in the past though, it

sounds fresh and aggressive and with a clarity that ensures that

every note and yelped vocal can be heard to great effect.

I cannot stop fucking playing it and would recommend you all

to do the same!

Buy record or free download

Daughters - Daughters (2010)

Daughters are a noise rock/mathcore band who play

a compelling mix of frenetic guitars, fast pounding

drums and a singer that sounds very David Yow-like.

The fast fretboard abuse is held together by a very

groove laden bass which is needed in this sonic

stew of abandonment - song structures are thrown

out the window but always manage to come together

before the chaos overwhelms.

This is fast, furious stuff with a whiff of experimentation -

these guys are making music that sounds like the sickness

I have in my mind. Don't take my word for it.

Band Info

Peopling - EP (2011)

Peopling is a noise-rock artist from Brooklyn, NY

and he sent me some info and tracks to review.

As you know, I do like a bit of noise-rock mixed

with my guitars but within reason - all the AmRep

and Brew bands are at my limits of tolerance but

the pure harsh white noise with no tunes - power

violence? - most of which seem to have been inflicted

upon me from Veins Dried Out - leave my brains

dribbling and a queasy feeling in my stomach.

So it was with some trepidation that I approached

this EP.

Hey, it's really good stuff. I know fuck all about IDM,

glitch, skronk and can only describe within the context

of music I know, so:

The 1st track starts off with white noise but is overlaid

with a keyboard swell before starting to pound away like

a Butthole Surfers song at their psychotic best.

The songs have a menacing feel to them and although

the electronic squalls are very much at the forefront of

things, the background is full of human touches, a piano

drifts in and out in one tune, giving it a unexpected haunting

feel, textures are heavily treated but always with an interesting

twist before the distorted guitars and vocals remind you that

this music is being performed and is not just a random

collection of Fruity Loops.

Being no longer than 17 minutes long means that just as you

are making sense of it all, it is over, leaving you with no choice

but to play again!

Listen on Bandcamp

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