Showing posts with label avant-garde. Show all posts
Showing posts with label avant-garde. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

VA - DeKalb Brawl City [2012]


This comp arrived in my mailbox some weeks ago, and finally I can share it with you. For those of you who don't live in Illinois, DeKalb is a town at the western extreme of Chicagoland, out on the Emperor Reagan Expressway. It's isolated enough from Chicago to have grown its own punk scene in the past few years, and the label Don't Panic, It's a Distro have assembled this compilation of the town's premier DIY artists. Sounds range from the thrashpunk of Sick/Tired (featuring members of MK Ultra & Weekend Nachos) to the World Inferno-infused ska stylings of Danger Boy to the blink-and-you'll-miss-it electronic glitch of Gonzo Violence to the folkpunk of Davey Dynamite ... you get the idea. For a comp with such a variety of genres, one might be tempted to write it off as being 'all over the place.' Truth is, it works together really well. Usually you can't pay me to listen to metal, but when the tracks from Minimum Wage Assassins and Baptism came on, I actually kept listening. It's possible you won't dig every track on here, but there's definitely something for everyone.

1. Hasta Lumbago - Race Car
2. Turbo Vamps - For My Boys
3. Sick/Tired - Sky High
4. "Richardson" Richardson - Beard Option / Incestuous Scene
5. Danger Boy - Dinosaur Neil
6. The Stockyards - Dead Roses
7. Minimum Wage Assassins - Chopped Up Burnt Left for Dead
8. MZRCDXVL - Pace
9. The Rales - First World Decay
10. Nobelium 102 - Unicorn Genocide
11. Davey Dynamite (& Friends) - Up and Down (Live from College Ave)
12. Gonzo Violence - Ghetto Tactics
13. Seasonal Men's Wear - Ice Climbers
14. Baptism - Ezway
15. A - DeKalb Raw Pity
16. Sleeping Under 47 - Rain Comin'
17. Jim Crowbot - DeKalb Brawl City


DeKalb Brawl City - listen/download here
Don't Panic, It's a Distro

[p.s. - 100th post! here's to the next hundred]

Friday, January 28, 2011

The Ex - Catch My Shoe [2010]


Here's the most recent from everyone's favorite Dutch improv-anarcho-post-punk-world collaborators the Ex. They've been called the Dutch answer to Crass, but the Fall might be closer to the mark (but without the associated dickishness). Maybe This Heat? Most all comparisons fail though, as the Ex is a pretty unique group. Some bands just get better with age and these guys are one of them. This album (their 25th, I think) is a jam, front to back. The opener, "Maybe I Was the Pilot," is different from the version released as a single earlier in 2010, with the new horn section. Really, the dissonant trumpet adds a lot to the sound of this album; it's well-executed and improves the urgency of the record. Katherina Bornefeld's propulsive drumming has a singular rhythm which is an absolute joy to watch live (see video below). And there's plenty of electric guitar free-kout stuff, like in "Bicycle Illusion." "Keep On Walking" is a triumphant anthem, totally accessible and inspiring. I can only think positive things about this band and this album. Highly recommended.



Buy the damn records
Why take a risk when you can take a vacation
Free music direct from the Ex
See them live, holy shit