Category: punk rock

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Over the past year or so, I’ve written quite a bit about the London-based garage punk quartet The Cavemen, and as you may recall, the band can trace its origins to when its founding members, Paul Caveman (vocals), Jack Caveman (guitar, vocals), Nick Caveman (bass) and Jake Caveman (drums) met attending high school in Auckland, New Zealand. Reportedly, the members of the band bonded over a shared love of sniffing glue and wild rock ‘n’ roll. After spending several years drinking and loitering in their hometown’s basements, graveyards and parking lots, they honed their sound, eventually spending the better part of 2014-2015 recording their full-length debut. Interestingly, their debut album received attention locally for their ability to craft furious, face-melting power chord-based punk, inspired by The Ramones, The Cramps, The Stooges, and The MC5. Thematically, the material found the band making references about grave-robbing, necrophilia and other perverse, Troma Films-inspired shit but with a sneering sense of humor.

Just two weeks before the band was about to relocate to London, they went on a national graveyard tour that became infamous for its tackiness and for being ill-fated: the band’s Nick Caveman died in a tragic car accident, which forced the cancellation of the rest of the tour. Since then, Dirty Water Records released their debut across the European Union and elsewhere — and as a result of album single “Stand By Your Ghoul” and their “Burn Out For Love” 7 inch, the now London-based received international attention for boozy and filthy punk rippers.

They built upon their growing reputation for old-school-inspired punk rippers with the release of last year’s Nuke Earth and the “Lowlife” 7 inch, which featured the Johnny Thunders‘ “Born to Lose,” Highway to Hell-era AC/DC and New York Dolls-like “Lowlife.” Interestingly, this year has been a rather busy year for the London-based punk rockers, as they quickly followed the “Lowlife” 7 inch with the breakneck, filthy, troglodyte stomp of “My Baby Knows.” Centered by buzzing power chords, a rousing, mosh pit friendly hook, shouted vocals and a boozy Chuck Berry-like solo, the track is frenzied and furious take on ’77 era punk, compete with Troma Films-like lyrics.

 

 

 

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Acclaimed Japanese Punk Act Releases Cinematic Visuals for Blistering “datsu hike no onna”

Over the past few months of this year, I’ve written a bit about the  Kyoto, Japan-based garage punk act Otoboke Beaver (おとぼけビ～バ～ in Japanese), and as you may recall the act which is comprised of Accorinrin (vocals, guitar), Yoyoyoshie (guitar, vocals), Hirochan (bass, vocals) and Kahokiss (drums, vocals) can trace their origins to when they all were members of Kyoto University’s music club.

Shortly after their formation, the quartet quickly received attention both locally and nationally for pairing incredibly dexterous musicianship with their frontwoman’s confrontational stage presence. Interestingly, when  Damnably Records released the Okoshiyasu!! Otoboke Beaver compilation, the Kyoto-based punk act began receiving airplay internationally from BBC Radio 6′s Gideon Coe and Tom Ravenscroft, XFM’s John Kennedy, as well as praise from the likes of Pitchfork, NPR, i-Dand The Fader.

Building upon a rapidly growing international profile, the members of the band made critically applauded and attention-grabbing appearances at SXSW and FujiRock Festival, played a sold out show at London‘s 100 Club — and their Love Is Short 7 inch charted in the UK for 4 weeks. Last year, the band went on a tour of the UK that was bookmarked by slots at Coachella.

The band’s newest album ITEKOMA HITS is slated for an April 26, 2019 release through their longtime label home Damnably Records, and from the album’s first three singles “Anata Watashi Daita Ato Yome No Meshi,” “Don’t light my fire” and “I’m tired of repeating your story” the Japanese band revealed that their specialized in feral and defiantly feminist rippers that drew from noise punk, no wave, prog rock and riot grrrl punk, centered around blistering power chords, rapid-fire chord progressions and tempo changes and shouted lyrics. The album’s fourth and latest single “datsu, hike no onna” continues in a similar vein as its immediate predecessor — furious, straightforward punk that bristles with discontent and frustration.

Directed by Haruka Mitani, the video for “datsu, hike no onna” marks an important first for the band — the first time they’ve collaborated with a female director. Shot in gorgeously cinematic 8mm film, the video focuses on a woman who is seemingly suffering from bipolar disorder — at one point manic and joyous, at another point murderous. Interestingly, as the band’s Accorinrin explains, the song “is a second woman’s song similar as my previous song’s themes. hikage no onna means woman in the shadows. It can be [a] metaphor for a mistress, an ‘illegitimate’ woman or a woman without a bubbly, outgoing personality. The message of this song is lamenting the oppression of being a woman in the shadows and about getting out from this suffering.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstays Plague Vendor Releases a Shimmering and Sci Fi Take on Post Punk

Over the past few years, I’ve written quite a bit about the Whittier, CA-based post-punk/ punk rock quartet Plague Vendor. And as you may recall, the act which is comprised of f Brandon Blaine (vocals), Luke Perine (drums), Michael Perez (bass) and Jay Rogers (guitar) formed back in 2009, quickly developing a reputation locally and regionally for frenetic and raucous live sets. Eventually, they began playing an increasing number of live shows across California with those shows leading to 2014’s full-length debut  Free to Eat, an album that some critics described as terse, dark and thrashing post-punk.

Bloodsweat, the JOVM mainstays’ 2016 Stuart Sikes-produced sophomore album landed at number 2 on that year’s Best of List, thanks in part to frenetic and anthemic album singles  “ISUA (I Stay Up Anyway)“, “Jezebel” and “No Bounty,” which were delivered with a blistering and forceful swagger. Two years passed before the band released two singles “I Only Speak in Fiction,” and “Locomotive,” which were recorded with Epitaph Records’ head and Bad Religion’s Brett Gurewitz and Morgan Stratton, which served to revitalize the band and restore their focus before joining  acclaimed producer John Congleton for the By Night sessions.

The band’s third full-length album, which is slated for a June 7, 2019 release through Epitaph Records finds the band stretching and warping their sound to evoke a merciless and unrelenting sense of tension and apprehension that should feel familiar in our current sociopolitical moment. “New Comedown,” the third album’s first single was an explosive roar, centered around a propulsive rhythm section, thunderous drumming, layers upon layers of power chords, a mosh pit friendly hook and Blaine’s howled vocals — and while bearing a resemblance to the singles recorded with Gurewitz and Stratton, the song reveals some of the most confident and self-assured songwriting and playing of their growing catalog.

Sonically, the album finds the band meshing the powerful but polished sound of contemporary rock with the countless reinterpretations of classic punk and post punk — while being encouraged by Congleton to push their sound and approach in new directions: in fact, the band employs the use of chorused band in endless waves, lighting strike flashes of synth, motor man-machine drums and even a string section.

Interestingly, By Night‘s second and latest single is a shimmering yet brooding and tense bit of post-punk centered around motorik-like drumming, buzzsaw-like guitars and a shout-along-worthy hook — and while bearing an uncanny resemblance of The Cars, the futuristic, sci-fi punk song captures a narrator, who has partied and fucked around to the point of losing what’s left of the sanity.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Acclaimed Melbourne-based Punk Act Amyl and The Sniffers Release Campy Visuals for Anthemic “I Got You”

Featuring Amy Taylor (vocals), Gus Romer (bass), Bryce Wilson (drums) and Declan Martens (guitar), the Melbourne, Australia-based punk act Amyl and The Sniffers formed in early 2016 — and during that year, they wrote, self-recorded their debut EP Giddy Up. The Aussie quartet followed up with 2017’s Big Attractions EP, which they re-released as a double 12 inch EP with Giddy Up through Homeless Records in Australia and Damaged Goods in the UK.

The band made their international touring debut with an appearance at The Great Escape Festival and series of sold out London area shows, which they followed up by joining JOVM mainstays King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard for a 22 date Stateside tour. They made triumphant returns to the UK and the US that included packed houses and rave festival reviews. They ended the year by signing with Flightless Records for distribution across Australia and New Zealand and Rough Trade for the rest of the world — and they were also nominated for a Best New Act at the Q Awards and won the $30,000 Levis Prize.

The Aussie punk quartet took this year’s SXSW by storm, receiving gushing praise from the likes of Rolling Stone, Austin Chronicle, NME, Austin-American Statesman, BrooklynVegan, DIY and others. Building upon a buzz worthy and growing profile, the members of Amyl and The Sniffers will be releasing their highly-anticipated self-titled, full-length debut is slated for a May 24, 2019 through Flightless Records and Rough Trade Records — and the album’s latest single, “Got You” is a completely unhinged and explosive take on ’77 era punk, complete with a rousingly anthemic hook, enormous power chords paired with Taylor’s snottily delivered vocals. “‘Got You’ is about that feeling you get when you first start seeing someone and you’re excited to see them, no matter what shit they got,” the band’s Amy Taylor explains. “You just see them at the pub and it feels like the most exciting thing in the world, like you’re so lucky they’re even there. It’s definitely one of the ‘sweetest’ songs on the album and less punky. It was kind of inspired by Split Enz.”

Directed by Melbourne-based director Triana Hernandez, the recently released video for “Got You” features the members of the band in a dysfunctional and possessive relationship. The band’s Taylor adds “We worked with Melbourne director Triana Hernandez for the video and we decided to make it less like a love song and more cheeky. We wanted to play with the power dynamics a bit and turn ‘I got you’ into ‘I literally own you’, just to make it a bit more dark. It’s obviously not a healthy relationship but that kind of thing is easy to slip into, too.” 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Join London’s Booze Fueled Punk Rockers The Caveman on Tour

Last year, I wrote a bit about the now-London-based punk rock quartet The Cavemen — and as you may recall, the band originally formed in Auckland, New Zealand when its initial lineup of Paul Caveman (vocals), Jack Caveman (guitar, vocals), Nick Caveman (bass) and Jake Caveman (drums) met while in high school — with the band’s founding members reportedly bonding over a shared love of glue and wild rock ‘n’ roll. After spending several years drinking and loitering around Auckland’s basements, graveyards and parking lots, the band’s founding lineup honed their sound. And over the course of 2014-2015, the band recorded their full-length debut, which received attention locally for material that at the time could be described as furious, face-melting power chord-based punk inspired by The Ramones, The Cramps, The Stooges, and The MC5 while thematically touching upon grave-robbing, necrophilia and other perverse shit with a sneering sense of humor; in fact, when the band was based in Auckland, they developed a reputation for being infamous — or as the band claimed at the time, they were a “great band to clear a party.”

Just two weeks before the members of the band were to relocate to London, they went on a rather infamous national tour to support their full-length debut. Unsurprisingly, the tour included an ill-fated graveyard tour that had to be canceled when Nick Caveman died in a tragic car accident. Dirty Water Records released their debut album across the European Union and elsewhere, and from debut album single “Stand By Your Ghoul” and their “Burn Out For Love” 7 inch, the band revealed that they specialized in a boozy and filthy punk rippers centered around fuzzy power chords, amphetamine-fueled drumming and howled vocals. Building upon a growing reputation for grimy, old-school-inspired punk, the London-based band released, the pummeling full-length Nuke Earth last year, which they followed up with the “Lowlife” 7 inch earlier this year. The 7 inch’s A-side “Lowlife” manages to be reminiscent of Johnny Thunders‘ “Born to Lose,” Highway to Hell-era AC/DC and New York Dolls with howled lyrics, a Chuck Berry-inspired guitar solo and a furious, booze-fueled nihilism.

The recently released video is split between raucous and sweaty, beer and shots-fueled live footage shot while the band was on tour and intimate, behind the scenes footage of the band goofing off while on the road. Of course, the band will be hitting the road with a French and Spanish that will run throughout this month.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Slated for an April 5, 2019 release through Dirtnap Records, Love Keeps Kicking, the forthcoming, third, full-length album from County Durham, England-based punk rock outfit Martha reportedly is partially a breakup record in which the album’s material goes through the familiar spectrum of emotions associated with heartbreak but while reminding the listener that what hurts now, won’t hurt forever — and that the hurt they experience will be a vital part of their life story, informing who they are, who they will become and how they treat others.

Centered around enormous and rousingly anthemic hooks, big power chords, a motorik-like groove and boy-girl harmonies, Love Keeps Kicking‘s latest single “The Void” is an urgent and frenzied bit of power pop tinged punk — but thematically, the song as the band explains in press notes is “about the cosmic darkness that’s engulfing the planet and all life on it. Impending ecological catastrophe, nuclear Armageddon, ancient gods awakening, suicidal sedation . . . We’re staring into the void . . .”

The band are currently in the middle of a lengthy UK and European Union tour. Check out the tour dates below.

Tour dates

06 April – UK – Margate, Elsewhere

07 April – BEL – Antwerp, Trix

08 April – DE – Bochum, Rotunde

09 April – DE – Wiesbaden, Schlachthof

10 April – DE – Köln, Sonic Ballroom

11 April – DE – Jena, Kassablanca

12 April – CZ – Prague – Klub 007 Strahow

13 April – DE- Alte Mälzerei, Heimspiel Festival

16 April – UK – London – The Garage

20 April – UK – Manchester – Manchester Punk Fest

26 April – UK – Bristol – Exchange

27 April – UK – Brighton – West Hill Hall

28 April – UK -Birmingham – Hare & Hounds

3 May – UK – Glasgow – Mono

5 May – UK – Leicester – Handmade Festival

13th July – UK – Cheltenham – 2000 Trees Festival

28th July – UK – Steventon – Truck Festival

29 Aug-1 Sept – UK – Larmer Tree Gardens, End of the Road Festival

8 Nov – UK – London – Heaven

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstays Plague Vendor Releases Explosive Visuals for Blistering and Anthemic “New Comedown”

Over the past couple of years, I’ve written quite a bit about Whittier, CA-based post-punk/ punk rock quartet Plague Vendor. And as you may recall, the act, which is comprised of Brandon Blaine (vocals), Luke Perine (drums), Michael Perez (bass) and Jay Rogers (guitar) formed back in 2009, and within a relatively short time, the band quickly developed a reputation for frenetic and raucous live sets. And as a result of that reputation, they began playing an increasing number of live shows in the area — and those early shows helped lead to 2014’s debut album, Free to Eat, an album that some critics have described as terse, dark and thrashing post-punk. 

2016’s Stuart Sikes-produced sophomore effort Bloodsweat landed at number 2 on this site’s Best of List, and from album singles “ISUA (I Stay Up Anyway)“, “Jezebel” and “No Bounty,” the album was full of frenetic, furious and anthemic punk performed with a blistering and undeniable swagger. Interestingly, two years or so passed before the members of the band released two singles, “I Only Speak in Fiction,” and “Locomotive,” which were recorded with Epitaph Records’ head and Bad Religion’s Brett Gurewitz and Morgan Stratton that served as a way to help revitalize the band and restore their focus — before joining renowned producer John Congleton, who would helm the sessions that would eventually result in the band’s forthcoming third album, By Night. 

While reportedly, the album is a return-to-form for the Whittier-based punk act, the album’s first single “New Comedown,” is a furious and explosive roar of a song, centered around a propulsive New Wave-like rhythm section, complete with thunderous drumming and a forcefully chugging bass line, layers power chords, and a mosh pit-friendly hook paired with Blaine’s howled vocals. Similar to the material recorded with Gurewitz and Stratton, “New Comedown” features some of the most confident and self-assured songwriting and playing of their growing catalog, making it arguably one of the best rock songs I’ve heard this year. 

The recently released Dan Monick-directed video for the new single features intimate close ups the band performing the song in the studio, with explosive strobe-lit sequences that captures the frenetic and passionate energy of the band’s live set. 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

With the release of 2014’s full-length debut, Dogging, the Sydney-based punk act Low Life featuring core trio Mitch Tolman, Cristian O’Sullivan and Greg Alfaro quickly received national and international attention.

Recorded over a two year period, the acclaimed Aussie punk band’s sophomore effort Downer Edn (read as Downer Edition) finds the band expanding from a trio to a quintet with the addition of Oily Boys and Orion’s Dizzy Daldal (guitar) and Yuta Matsumura (guitar) — with Matsumura rejoining the band to allow Tolman to be a full-time vocalist. And with the addition of Daldal and Matsumura, the band has gone through a decided change in sonic direction; in fact, as you may recall, the album’s first single, the icy Joy Division-like “Lust Forevermore” featured a lush, post-punk/New Wave inspired sound, complete with an anxious and urgency tension. Interestingly, the album’s second single “The Pitts” is a seamless synthesis of grimy, feedback-filled punk and lush post-punk, as the track is centered by a mosh pit friendly hook, shouted and howled lyrics — and while bearing an uncanny resemblance to 120 Minutes-era alt rock, the song possesses a post-modern anxiousness.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Zig Zags Release an Urgent Headbanger

Currently comprised of founding member Jed Maheu (guitar, vocals), Dane Andrews (drums) and longtime sound engineer, multi-instrumentalist Sean Hoffman (bass), the Los Angeles-based thrash punk/metal trio Zig Zags over the course of their eight year history have released seven singles, three albums and a number of lineup changes — and throughout that time he band has managed to continually evolve their sound, their songwriting approach and their overall aesthetic.  Interestingly, the band’s fourth full-length album They’ll Never Take Us Alive is slated for a May 10, 2019 release through RidingEasy Records, and the album finds the band upping the stakes while revealing their earliest influences — in particular, their love of Dead Moon and Wipers, while remaining decidedly heavy metal. 

They’ll Never Take Us Alive’s latest single, the Kill ‘Em All and Ride the Lightning-era Metallica-like “Fallout” will further cement their long-held reputation for crafting headbanging, power chord-based riffs and rousingly anthemic “raise-your-beer-in-the-air-and-shout-along-lustily” hooks but the song is centered by a blistering urgency that hasn’t been heard on their previously released material. 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Currently comprised of founding member Natalie Hoffman (vocals, guitar, synth) with Charlotte Watson (drums) and Madison Farmer (bass), the Memphis, TN-based punk rock  act Nots quickly rose to national prominence with the release of their full-length debut, 2014’s We Are Nots, an effort that sonically drew from 60s garage rock, 77-era punk, thrash punk, No Wave and New Wave. 2017’s sophomore effort Cosmetic found the act expanding upon the sound that first caught the attention of the blogosphere and elsewhere, while lyrically commenting on sociopolitical concerns — in particular, the album focused on the rough and complicated edges of desire, deceit and distortions. and how they impact appearances and your sense of reality.

Last year, the band went through a significant lineup change with longtime keyboardist Alexandra Hoffman leaving the band. Understandably, the threat of the band losing Eastburn’s hammering synth progressions resulted in some growing pains for the band. But when the newly constituted trio arrived at Bunker Audio to recored material with their longtime friend, collaborator and engineer, Andrew McCalla, each member fully embracing the band’s new identity and approach. Rather than completely abandon the noisy synth attack aspect of their sound, Hoffman decided to take up synths. Slated for a May 10, 2019 release through their longtime label home Goner Records, the band’s forthcoming album, the aptly titled 3 should be seen and understood as something altogether different from its predecessors.”Once we really leaned into the space that being a three-piece afforded us, our writing started to make better sense and connect,” the band’s Natalie Hoffmann explains in press notes. “It made for a more interesting record than if we stayed comfortable and safe in the way we were writing.”

Reportedly through the entire album, the band explores themes of lost control, societal division and strife, the loss of reality in performance and how exhausting it can be to navigate the blurry lines between playing an actor/performer and playing human. And while continuing in a similar heady thematic space as its predecessor, the band’s forthcoming third album was recorded live — but with an intense, improvisational energy to the proceedings. 3’s first single, “Half-Painted House” is centered by a propulsive bass line, wild squealing feedback and synths, shouted lyrics, shouted lyrics and a mosh pit friendly hook — and while bearing a resemblance to Cosmetic, the hypnotic track may arguably be one of the darker songs they’ve released to date, as the song is “about being stuck in a haze of repetitive cycles while change proves to be both stubborn and elusive. The veneer of what it looks like to be ‘normally functioning’ during these tumultuous times is peeling to reveal a mind struggling to keep from turning against itself,” Hoffman explains in press notes.

Nots have confirmed a handful of SXSW sets and a couple of live shows. There will be more coming in the near future; but in the meantime, check out the live dates below.

Live Dates: 
 
3/14: Austin, TX – Levitation – Hotel Vegas – 5:45PM
3/15: Austin, TX – She Shreds – Saraha Lounge – 1:20PM
3/15: Austin, TX – Goner Records – Beerland – 1:00AM

3/29: Memphis, TN – Bar DKDC

5/25 – Memphis, TN – B-Side Bar (Album Release Show)
More To Come…
Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Last month, I wrote about the Kyoto, Japan-based garage punk act Otoboke Beaver (おとぼけビ～バ～ in Japanese) and as you may recall the act which features Accorinrin (vocals, guitar), Yoyoyoshie (guitar, vocals), Hirochan (bass, vocals) and Kahokiss (drums, vocals) can trace their origins to when they while being members of Kyoto University‘s music club. The quartet quickly built a profile both locally and nationally for pairing incredibly dexterous musicianship with Accorinrin’s confrontational stage presence; but when Damnably Records released the Okoshiyasu!! Otoboke Beaver compilation, the Kyoto-based quartet received airplay internationally from the likes of BBC Radio 6′s Gideon Coe and Tom Ravenscroft, XFM’s John Kennedy, as well as praise from the likes of Pitchfork, NPR, i-D and The Fader.

Building upon a rapidly growing international profile, the members of the band made critically applauded and attention-grabbing appearances at SXSW and FujiRock Festival, played a sold out show at London‘s 100 Club — and their Love Is Short 7 inch charted in the UK for 4 weeks. Last year, the band went on a tour of the UK that was bookmarked by slots at Coachella. The quartet’s newest album ITEKOMA HITS is slated for an April 26 2019 release through their longtime label home Damnably Records and the album’s first two singles “Anata Watashi Daita Ato Yome No Meshi” and “Don’t light my fire,” were feral rippers that possessed elements of noise punk, no wave, prog rock and riot grrrl punk. Interestingly, ITEKOMA HITS’ third and latest single “I’m tired of your repeating story” is much more straightforward yet breakneck punk rock track centered around a propulsive bass line, some blistering guitar rock and shouted lyrics that express a mix of fury and frustration. You don’t have to understand what it is they’re actually saying to get that it’s defiantly, boldly feminist — and it fucking rips hard. What else do you need?

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Follow Bad Sports’ Orville Neely on a Drunken and Lonely Spree in Video for “Don’t Deserve Love”

The Denton, TX/Austin, TX-based trio Bad Sports, comprised of Orville Neely III (guitar, vocals),  Aniel Fried (drums) and Gregory Rutherford (bass) featured some of their home state’s most accomplished musicians — Neely is the frontman of the acclaimed OBN IIIs, while Fried and Rutherford have played together in Video and Radioactivity. Now, as you may recall, the band released their fourth album Constant Stimulation through their longtime label home Dirtnap Records last October, and the album which marks the band’s tenth anniversary, also found the band pushing their sound and songwriting in a new, more mature direction. centered by a leaner, tense production meant to evoke a decided sense of frustration, tension, and world-weariness.

Constant Stimulation‘s first single “Don’t Deserve Love” further cements the trio’s reputation for crafting power chord-based punk but there’s a decided power pop bent, as the song reveals a deliberate and thoughtful attention to rousingly anthemic hooks and earnest emotion. Sonically, the song manages a contemporary take on a familiar sound without being soulless mimicry. But interestingly enough, the song may arguably be the most personal song they’ve written and released as it’s fueled the crippling self-doubt and insecurity of a vulnerable adult, who has openly and freely admitted that while life has made them a survivor, they’re lonely, desperate, broken, fucked up, confused, and afraid — of connecting with others and getting heartbroken and having to start again; of being a failure and a fraud; of a world that’s going up in flames and not caring or not knowing what to do. 

Directed by Z.W.Sprague and written by Orville Neely, the recently released video for “Don’t Deserve Love” stars Neely as a self-conscious, lonely, and somewhat awkward man, who acts in an out of control fashion — drinking way too much, doing way too much coke, smoking too many cigarettes and takes jokes way too far. And as a result, the video’s protagonist winds up frustrating and annoying everyone around him. After being discovered vomiting in a bar bathroom, Neely gets tossed out of the bar, stumbles off to a convenience store for more booze, vomits once again and ends the night drunkenly passed out, disappointed and alone. While being profoundly sad, the video illustrates a much bigger point — that for many of us, we’ve been that lonely, drunken slob, lost in their sadness, self-flagellation and inability to do anything about it. 

Video by William Ruben Helms

Consisting of Accorinrin ( vocal, guitar), Yoyoyoshie (guitar, vocals), Hirochan (bass, vocals) and Kahokiss (drums, vocals), the Kyoto, Japan-based garage punk act Otoboke Beaver (おとぼけビ～バ～ in Japanese) trace their origins to when they met while beiner g members of Kyoto University‘s music club. The Japanese garage punk quartet quickly built a profile both locally and nationally for pairing incredibly dexterous musicianship with Accorinrin’s confrontational stage presence; but when Damnably Records released the Okoshiyasu!! Otoboke Beaver compilation, the Kyoto-based quartet received airplay internationally from the likes of BBC Radio 6′s Gideon Coe and Tom Ravenscroft, XFM’s John Kennedy, as well as praise from the likes of Pitchfork, NPR, i-D and The Fader.

Building upon a rapidly growing international profile, the members of the band made critically applauded and attention-grabbing appearances at SXSW and FujiRock Festival, played a sold out show at London‘s 100 Club — and their Love Is Short 7 inch charted in the UK for 4 weeks. Last year, the band went on a tour of the UK that was bookmarked by slots at Coachella. The up-and-coming band’s newest album ITEKOMA HITS is slated for an April 26 2019 release through their longtime label home Damnably Records, and from the album’s first two singles “Anata Watashi Daita Ato Yome No Meshi” and “Don’t light my fire,” you’ll see why they’re so buzzworthy: their feral rippers draw from from noise punk, no wave, prog rock, riot grrrl-era punk in a way that bear a resemblance to Bo Ningen while being defiantly feminist.

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

In the very early days of this site, I wrote quite a bit about the Ottawa, Ontario, Canada-based Steve Adamyk Band, and although it’s been some time since I’ve personally written about them, they’ve remained one of Canada’s contemporary, premier power pop/punk acts. Throughout the past decade, the band has toured Japan, North America and Europe while releasing five full-length albums and a lengthy list of seven inch singles. Back in 2016, the band’s most consistent and longest-held lineup split up, and it would have been accepted and natural to call it a day and move on with something else; however, the band has managed to continue with the same relentless touring schedule — and a new lineup featuring the band’s only remaining original member Dave Williams (guitar, vocals), The Acorn’s Pat Johnson (drums) and Uranium Comeback’s Johnny O (bass).

The newly constituted trio’s forthcoming full-length album Paradise was recorded by Mike Bond at Wolf Lake Studios and mixed by Jesse Gander in Vancouver, and the album reportedly finds the band retaining some of the same vibe that fans and critics have come to know and love — but with a larger, beefed up sound. Clocking in at a breakneck 93 seconds, Paradise‘s first single is the scuzzy and anthemic power chord ripper “In Death.” Just listening to the song brings back warm memories of dark dive bars and sweaty, foul-smelling punk rock clubs in the Lower East Side with sweaty dudes in a mosh pit, shouting along to the song’s enormous raise-your-beer-aloft hook.

The members of The Steve Adamyk band will be on tour to support the new album. Sadly, there aren’t any NYC area tour dates (as of yet at least) but check out the dates below.

 

Tour Dates:
2/15 – Ottawa, ON @ Mavericks (with Teenage Head)
2/22 – Cincinnati, OH @ NorthSide Yacht Club (with Raging Nathans,
Vacation, Dopamines)
2/23 – Fort Wayne, IN @ Berry Street Recording (with Raging Nathans)
2/24 – Madison, WI @ Mickey’s Tavern (with Raging Nathans, Proud Parents)
2/26 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Street Entry (with Mike Krol)
2/27 – Milwaukee, WI @ Back Room at Collectivo (with Mike Krol)
2/28 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle (with Mike Krol)
3/01 – Detroit, MI @ Deluxx Fluxx (with Mike Krol)
3/02 – Toronto, ON @ The Garrison (with Mike Krol)
3/23 – Ottawa, ON @ House of Targ
4/26 – Ottawa, ON @ The Dominion Tavern
5/09 – Quebec City, QC @ Scanner Bistro (with DeeCracks)
5/10 – Moncton, NB @ The Caveau (with DeeCracks, Chiller, Phone Jerks)
5/11 – Halifax, NS @ Gus’ Pub (with DeeCracks, Outtacontroller)
5/12 – Shawinigan, QC @ Brewery (with DeeCracks)
5/16 – Ottawa, ON @ Black Squirrel Books (with DeeCracks)