Neon Blud - B Girls 12"

Artist: Neon Blud

Album: B Girls 12"

Release: 2010

Label: Drugged Conscience

Tracklist:

1. Bleed Blud

2. Untitled

3. Untitled

Released a few months ago, Neon Blud's new 12" marks a new era for the band. With the addition of second guitarist D. Vassalotti, the band has progressed in leaps and bounds. B Girls is a vast improvement over its predecessor, the Whipps cassette, in literally every single way imaginable.

While the influence is still present, Neon Blud relies less on Sonic Youth-worship than on that tape. Instead, the band opens up their aural palette to include a variety of newer influences. None of this is more evident than on the first eight minutes of the sole A-side track of "Bleed Blud," which is comprised of an instrumental section that reminds me of a way less technically-proficient Amon Düül II warming up at practice with a This Heat cover. SHAZAM.

While it might not do it for some, I find this section to be particularly engaging. Don't fret, however, as the precise cacophony eventually breaks into a solid riff and eventually becomes what is classic Neon Blud. If it wasn't obvious at first, this section will make it apparent that the recording quality is exponentially better than Whipps. The band is far more confident about they wants and they certainly achieve it with this sound.

In addition to superior song structure and better recording quality, one should also take note of Sam's vocals. She's grown far more confident since her days with Body Rot and even the earlier Neon Blud material. This makes her delivery of the band's accounts of social and emotional morbidity far more effective. It also helps that the lyrics have veered (somewhat) away from immediate shock and into a more subtle and, ultimately, more disconcerting territory. I mean, the lyrical content of Whipps wasn't SHOCKING, but it certainly wasn't subtle!

The B-Side of the record is more straightforward and is made up of two untitled songs that, along with the "song" section of "Bleed Blud," constitute what is the best material from Neon Blud. I enjoyed Whipps upon my first few listens, quite a bit actually, but I soon forgot about it. I've had this material with me for months now and I've only grown to love it more with time. I really wish I could have seen them play this material live, but they had actually already "moved on" from this and were playing an all-new, unfamiliar set. Bastards! Still bitter about that one...

With Whipps, Neon Blud certainly divided fans of their past bands with what they were doing. B Girls won't change that, but I think that it's a better introduction to the band and is far more representative of what the band is doing these days. For those not especially moved by Whipps, I beg you to listen to B Girls. It's fantastic.

Download Here

To Buy, PayPal $12.00 to burnxnaples[at]yahoo[dot]com OR $24 for both the Neon Blud 12" and the Merchandise LP.

-Adam