Vows (2013)

Things I'm reminded of when listening to Slave Vows: how much I wanted to like The Icarus Line before even hearing them 'cause they looked like a handsome death metal band, how The Icarus Line dissed The Strokes when I was still in love w The Strokes and people said 'diss', how The Icarus Line called The Strokes '$ellout$' or something even though The $troke$ always sounded cynically planned if not entirely manufactured (like heaps of good pop!), how Joe Cardamone went all Birthday Party and I stopped paying attention to his band having 'discovered' The Birthday Party/Jesus Lizard/whatever, probably thanks to being 'warmed up' to that shit prior via the much celebrated Penance Soiree which for all of its praise sounded to me, and this is why I liked it back then, like Marilyn fucking Manson, something about how Aaron North was mean to the crowd at their Auckland show, something about mental collapse, how that same year I went to a festival solely to see The $troke$ and $Metallica$ and left permanently suspicious of both epics and hipster apathy, I hear Iggy Pop (inevitably), and Damo Suzuki (surprisingly), and the bullshit rockist figurative-athons stemming from the same born-too-late anxiety that lead to the garage rock revival of the 000s (and helped Penance Soiree reach the ridic audience it did, no doubt) have become the go-to method for describing Slave Vows and what's worse is something like this, but I'm having an operation in 3 hours! and I'm bored and hungry and all I wanted from this, 'cause I don't care whether rock's dead or alive or in the process of being 'saved', was to be excited and engaged, and oh hey this one sounds like Suicide, and it's excited me, but I want it LOUDER, so I'm gonna lie in bed for the next 2 days with headphones and Slave Vows and see if maybe the born-too-late-rs are right for once again, and think about this, as corny as it is, I thought it was defining at the time I left that $trotellica$ festival, for those of us already dead or alone or in stasis who want anything other than music designed to embody this state (they call it ennui!) or avoid acknowledging it altogether (epix), something which impulsively or intuitively breaks from it, in spite of it, having lived with it, and hating it, like it's not some cynical and so profound truth of our age but an inevitable bad luck which maybe real expression can cure: Slave Vows may or may not be just this on an individual level, but it's intended that way and so well worth a shot:

“In previous years I’ve put out records that have been too long, because I’ve been working on them for like four fuckin’ years, and I’ve imagined it’s probably the last one I’ll ever do, so I just put everything on there. But at this point in my life, I don’t really give a fuck anymore. I know I’m gonna make records for as long as I’m alive, so I’m not as precious any more, I don’t care. This thing only exists so we can be happy and do something that matters to us, and to the people who need this as much as we do.”

try / where to buy(?)

Slow Warm Death - Slow Warm Death (2013)

Emo gone garage pop. Another 2013 notable worth noting outside of a list of notables. Generously free just to rub it in.

bandcamp / storenvy

Jacks - Vacant World (1968)

Jacks played depressi-psych years before it was cool. Vacant World is their first album. The songs are all folky and poppy with depressive/psych undercurrents there to keep the listener on edge and feeling bad over the course of the album. It never gives the listener a reason to be on edge because it doesn't explode at any point, and its psychedelia is more of an outcome in the listener than an explicit stylistic decision. Although its undercurrents remain undercurrents, Vacant World will depress you and it will make you dizzy, entirely because of these undercurrents. Undercurrents.

here

Get Your Singles (1999)

Svenonius-core (though the ideological core is supposedly sharing/liberation) Gospel Yeh-Yeh. Get yours, you fifth member. Fire your boss. Replace your bourgeois rock n roll with Svenonius-core rock n roll. Pretend participate in this collection, ready and awaiting your consumption. The joke's on you in one way or another, but the songs are good and there are 23 of them.

get yours / you pig

can you drive a honda/a fuckin escort (2007/11)

Garagey spasto-punk I thought I'd want because I saw it in one of those HEY LOOK WHAT I BOUGHTs on Ruban Nielson's instagram (teehee). Makes sense for a song as a *yawn* 000s Fall-but-not (Le Shok or Strange House) and then promptly justifies itself and all of a sudden I'm like what the fuck give him back his air conditioner and also I hope Mary Ellen is okay and re Hondas, no, I don't think so

B+

try / buy

oh the chains! (2009)

When it jangles loose and naturally quiet-loud it threatens to go somewhere the K record ironists couldn't possibly have it go, hence the frustrating tug-of-war of I don't know, taste (?), that takes place over these 10 messy tracks. I mean, we could pretend to be in on it. You could or can if you want but I'm off to do something else

C-

yo / buy

new men masquerading as REAL old men (2013)

Though their deal was always theft, their gift was a punk rock recklessness towards punk rock conservatism and an understanding that both theft and recklessness could be used as tools for an unconventional refinement. New Moon is their most refined effort in that sense because it's their most brutishly, apparently offensively, reckless record yet. And as always it's about heritage.

Odd that those defending The Men's SST classics comp sound/continuity can't seem to shake the feeling that on New Moon they're taking the piss, presumably simulating the effect that a Let it Be, New Day Rising, Sister, or Green Mind release might've had in the era from which The Men so liberally take, and said supporters so glorify. If it's a trick then it's complex- is it weeding out punk rock conservatives by declaring from its first breath that it won't fulfill any of our expectations after Open Your Heart by sounding kind of like a drunken rehearsal of Til the Morning Comes? It mattered on Open Your Heart when they aped Stiff Little Fingers as if to declare THERE WILL BE NO L.A.D.O.C.H., and I'd say it matters here too. As with Turn it Around, they're concerned with honesty: what Open the Door does is sort of warn that they're exploring or paying respect to the ragged/self-destructive ancestry of the indie punk they for three albums plundered and recreant critics so celebrated.

What this means is a work and sound ethic inspired by Neil Young's 'looseness'- human error, and simplicity as a means to reinvigorate rock n roll, and Alex Chilton's subversive fuckupery- deconstructed rock n roll providing multiple angles from which to experience it- the musician's feels and the critic's snort, among others. Young's influence occurs whenever they'd otherwise just sound like Dino Jr or Wilco, and while Chilton is ever-present in the band's primitivist ridiculousness, the clearest audible nod and indication of their self-awareness is in Without a Face, its jarring harmonica recalling Radio City's Life is White. Then just as everything points towards collapse, the band jolts back sort of reminding us that it'll only be through the lens of 80s designer chaos and a 2010s perspective of that that we'll ever be able to witness it (whether they head into Third territory next is anyone's guess). As much as such a progression would make sense, they sound fine being just on the brink of punk rock devastation.

Smartly critic proof (in time), they've paid their dues and managed to piss off those who've grown too comfortable identifying with punk rock revisionists of decades past. New Moon is a shambles, respectfully, which strengthens the roots of their art as the band explore the vulnerabilities, headaches, and in spite of that, appeal, of the antecedents to their influences. Attractive or not, New Moon is a reflective detour or like sensitively planned identity crisis from a band who'd previously appealed in their image of carefree thieves and forgers. Unexpected, but smart, funny, affecting, and bold.

A

try / buy

The Cramps - Smell of Female (1983)

One of those all-time-great live-albums. Goes hard and has a nice story attached: label issues, Cramps not allowed to release anything, bootlegged like crazy, old songs, again and again, sound bad, bootlegged, after all, such is the nature of, but then, Smell of Female detailing transition between two periods for the band, public thirst, hungry band, some fun covers, some fun originals, would be important enough if it weren't so good, but it is, so good, Call of the Wighat, She Said (bonus), (also included)

A+

try / buy

The Cramps - Rockinnreelininaucklandnewzealandxxx (1986)

Smell of Female is my jam and all but holy fucking shit have you heard this? That one's important as an album and a document- b-movie-obsessed freaks kept from recording anything for two years finally get to release something and it's somewhere between the reverby freakiness of where they'd been and the aggression of where they'd go. This one's pretty much all the way there- tiny pants, noise guitars, and animal singing

A

try / alt / buy (1 / 2)

The Fuzztones - Lysergic Emanations (1985)

'cause you're living in a b horror movie any way. The Cramps had done Smell of Female 2 years earlier, Ramones were briefly good again, and The B-52's had run out of steam. Pinball machines, junkyards, subways, milkshakes, burgers, shit movies, alcohol, zombies, etc

B+

(included with some peel sessions)

V/A - Back From the Grave, Vol. 3 (1984)

A1 Chentelles - Be My Queen

A2 Little Willie and the Adolescents - Get Out of My Life

A3 Ken and The 4th Dimension - See If I Care

A4 Me and Them Guys - I Loved Her So

A5 The Interns - I've Got Something to Say

A6 Intruders 5 - Ain't Comin' Back

A7 The Monacles - I Can't Win

A8 Lil' Boys Blue - I'm Not There

B1 Jerry and The Others - Don't Cry to Me

B2 The Fugitives - You Can't Blame That on Me

B3 The Raunch Hands - Tiger Guitars

B4 William the Wild One - Willie the Wild One

B5 Murphy and The Mob - Born Loser

B6 The Mods - You've Got Another Thing Comin'

B7 Sir Winston & The Commons - We're Gonna Love

B8 The Royal Flairs - Suicide

B9 Montells - You Can't Take Me

Due to the inevitable deduction and fabrication in the reimagining or reconstitution of any given era, the renditions produced are always simulacral- caricatures ready for nostalgic fetishization. Their purpose is to be gazed upon, so that we can make pretend that whatever follows can't and won't be the same, take comfort in an illusory past, and conclude I guess I just wasn't made for these times. The Back to the Grave series offers an alternative view of the 1960s which has had removed from it the pop-historical landmarks frequently used in caricaturing the decade- psychedelia, artshit, free love, romantic folk, hope, and breezy pop. It's the same process of deduction and fabrication, only what we have instead is a world where zombies walk the earth, it's always dark outside, aliens hide in the bushes outside your house, and every band sounds like a janglier, more musically able Ramones. It's that camp, knowing exaggeration which makes the swampy b-horror version so appealing, I think. Volume 3 is the love-song volume, so I like it the most. Come for the bizarro soundworld, stay for the songs, or whatever

A

check it out (vinyl rip)

Big Star - Columbia: Live at Missouri University 4/25/93 (1993)

By all means a failure that the listener can't deny the multifaceted success of- i) Big Star's  perfect 60s English pop through the lens of 70s American youth through the lens of ii) Chilton's decline and so fascination with imperfection and avant-garde fuck ups through the lens of iii) alt rock's embrace of Chilton's pop mastery and avant-garde fuckuppery (The Posies make up half the members). Facet (iii) makes it all dirtier, garagier, heavier than he allowed himself to go even during his (ii) period, with songs from his (i) period, and some nice covers too. Chilton fans rejoice, Big Star fans beware. Nothing's sacred, etc

A

here

Pussy Galore - Right Now! (1987)

Similar to Harry Pussy and it's not just 'cause both their names mention pussy which is arguably the reason both bands exist- hipper than thou deconstructionist rock for (uh) hipsters and sexually frustrated losers. But where Harry Pussy began to understand their noise and use it to express something genuine, Pussy Galore collapse in a heap of postmodern rock n roll mockery and excess. To channel the Stones' drug-ness and blues-ness but have your tongue in cheek in order to mock the Stones' drug-ness and blues-ness regardless of your own drug problems and blues riffs

Dumb but thrilling. Fuck You, Man is him screaming Fuck you, man! White Noise is white trash!

A+

sample

Alex Chilton - Like Flies on Sherbert (1979)

1. Boogie Shoes

2. My Rival

3. Hey! Little Child

4. Hook or Crook

5. I've Had It

6. Rock Hard

7. Girl After Girl

8. Waltz Across Texas

9. Alligator Man

10. Like Flies on Sherbert

11. No More The Moon Shine On Lorena

A strange album from Alex Chilton, master of perfect pop songs. Intentionally terrible in every way: production, musicianship, what is and isn't being recorded. I'm unsure whether he's deconstructing and leaving imperfect rock & roll like Neil Young did on Tonight's the Night to expose a song's constituents and capture the artist's anguish, or whether he's being chaotic and punk rock just for the sake of it. Either way I like it. True, nobody would care about Like Flies on Sherbert if it didn't have someone like Chilton behind it, but it's interesting because it's someone like Chilton being so unlistenably amateurish

B+

here
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The Lazy Cowgirls - Tapping the Source (1987)

Whereas some garage rockers found inspiration in Otis Redding records, secularizing the formula and retaining Redding’s raw forthrightness, others admired the dumb forthrightness of The Ramones and wondered how they ever made it out of the garage. That’s The Lazy Cowgirls, I think. They’re punk because they play their rock too simple. They’re garage because they're aware of this. Tapping the Source is an appropriately drunken half hour which may or may not be the essence of rock and roll distilled. I don’t know about that given the absence of “soul,” and therefore “blues,” but what am I, a musicologist? They lay their souls bare in their sometimes great lyrics: “Well they ask me what I drink for, what am I trying to forget / Well I know there was a reason, but I can't remember it,” and I feel that, but I don’t care at all about the first half of this record and I’ve no idea why they stretch Yakety Yak out to almost six minutes on the better side

C+

J.T. IV - Cosmic Lightning (2008)

Bizarro 70s-80s outsider punk rock accidentally marrying Stooges/VU worship, mindfuck sections, and folkish-lo-fi vulnerability

Yeah, it's that good

A

story
buy (when they stock up)

Bob Seger - Ramblin' Gamblin' Man (1968)

Was at some point known as Tales of Lucy Blue

But then it was not

Bob fuckin Seger. Not the most popular dude I've ever posted music by, and maybe for good reason. But here's Ramblin' Gamblin' Man any way

Some of Seger's most hateful haters like Ramblin' Gamblin' Man because it's so different to what you expect from him. They find it's either good, admirable, or interesting. Or maybe all of those, I dunno. Seger fans on the other hand (I half count myself as one), might find issue with it because it's NOT unpretentious HARD WORKING blue collar heroism, and is in fact PSYCHEDELIC. I have my reasons for not giving a shit about psych-seger, but here's some RAMBLIN' ones to flesh this page out: Seger's hard-working blue collar freedom loving lyricism, aesthetic, and fanbase, are largely at odds with the idea of the psychedelic if one takes Morrison's and then Kael's (>implying I've ever read Kael) ideas seriously- that the naivete of the psych-fan is a sugar-coated pill of lies and optimism available solely to those of privilege, the denial of things evil, which is dangerous as for all that optimism, hedonism, and intellectualism, when those of high-profile get involved, it's all the more irresponsible, blinding, and is in fact wholly immoral. Make sense? No? Good. Ramblin' Gamblin' Man has a few really good tracks on it- 2 + 2 = ? might be a protest song, but it's a good pissed off garage rock one that'd indicate the tipping of the pendulum toward Seger's world-weary working-class narratives, or at least the end of all the dumb joy to the world bullshit that Ramblin' Gamblin' Man accidentally half-embodies. Is it his fault? Nah, it half seems like he's tried to cover up his psych material (okay, I made that up), and the fact that this was released in 1968 just reminds me how hard he had to work to break into any real fame. Also, I haven't read any of the lyrics 'cause frankly I'm not moved by how this record sounds. For all I know, he acknowledges time, place, gender, ethnicity, and income, making even his psych record far from blind, but I'm just so indifferent to Ramblin' Gamblin' Man that I guess I'll never know. I mean, that hardly ever happens! I find music crazy polarizing! Ramblin'? Good! Check it out if you're a Seger-hater! Or maybe get it for 2 + 2 = ? 'cause that song rules

C

Simply Saucer - Cyborgs Revisited (1989)

Simply Saucer rocked real hard in Canada in the 1970s and nobody really gave a shit about them at the time making them ripe for the retrospective cultification from alternative minded music collectors and/or critics, and this 18 track hour and thirteen minute collection supremely helpful if the reader intends to do the same

Is it all worth it? Yeah, it is. Straight away you'll think this is Stooges-y and then this is Velvet Underground-y and then this is kraut rock-y and all the other stuff that'll remind you of other retrospectively cultified bands like Les Rallizes Dénudés. But does the internet ever get sick of obscuro psych noise rock?

nah

bitch

A-

The Flesh Eaters - A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die (1981)

1. Digging My Grave 4:22

2. Pray til You Sweat 2:36

3. River of Fever 3:55

4. Satan's Stomp 5:49

5. See You in the Boneyard 3:30

6. So Long 3:30

7. Cyrano de Berger's Back 3:22

8. Divine Horseman 7:09

Suitably named after a 60s horror/sci-fi film (as garage bands should be), The Flesh Eaters are often discussed in regard to the better known X (with whom The Flesh Eaters shared some members), and punk blues bands inspired by The Flesh Eaters. This is a pity as vocalist Chris D. has one of the best punk voices I've ever heard and his lyrics are fantastic also. And because it doesn't account for those parts where you think holy shit that sounds like Captain Beefheart and Half Japanese, so fucked up jazz is as much a part of their sound as punk and blues. What I mean is they're unique and better than all these foolish punk comparisons

A

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Cheater Slicks - Walk Into the Sea (2007)

1. My Position on Nothingness

2. Tattoos Are Stoopid

3. Eye

4. Pipsqueek

5. Baudelaire's Ghost

6. Dead Beat

7. Run, Run, Run

8. Walk Into The Sea

9. Crackin' Up

10. Westford Cemetery

11. Dry As A Bone

Drunk and dark rock and roll only true to drunkenness and darkness- garage, punk rock, and noise all applicable but perhaps too restricting or maybe not true 'cause it's all that but it's also Les Rallizes Dénudés or Harry Pussy or pop rock or blues depending on what'll make the album seem like it's going faster or just appear drunker and darker to the listener- either way they've done it all for us, and it works on both levels

Cheater Slicks have been releasing consistently good albums since 1989. Next up- 1993's Whiskey

B

buy (lame, sold out for now)
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