Leather - Anchorite 7"

Artist: Leather
Album: Anchorite 7"
Release: 2010
Label: Caesar Cuts

Tracklist:

1. Inanna Altar
2. Prince Of The Salon
3. The Sportsman
4. Anchorite

Leather returns with their first piece of vinyl, the Anchorite 7". The EP proves to be a huge jump in quality from their demo tape and it's clear that things seem to be coming way more naturally for the band, who've solidified their grungy form of punk. If the song "The Swinging Man" came to life, it might sound like this [Note: My apologies for yet another hyperbolic My War comparison.] Their hot singer, who is endlessly writhing around on the floor during their live sets, still possesses a voice that makes me feel uncomfortable.

This formula produces an excellent EP. Three of the songs on here are very good. The fourth, "Prince Of The Salon," however, is incredible. When I first put this EP on, I found myself impressed with the opening track, "Inanna Altar," and, in the middle of thinking to myself that the band had definitely improved upon their demo, the opening riff and drumstick hits of "Prince" stopped me dead in my tracks. The song possesses such an incredible guitar line that is both catchy and punishing. Additionally, the vocalist deviates from his regular horny howling in what actually sounds like an attempt at "singing" and it's so good.

The Anchorite 7" is one EP that's well worth hearing. Leather has gone from a band of mild interest for me to one I'll definitely be following way more closely in the future. Also, if you buy the record (and, as always, you should so we don't feel too guilty,) prepare for a headache by the end of it!

Download Here
To Buy, email caesar.cuts@gmail.com for PayPal info (it's $5ppd)

-Adam

Frijid Pink - Self Titled

Artist: Frijid Pink
Album: Self Titled
Release: 1970
Label: Parrot

Tracklist:

1. God Gave Me You
2. Crying Shame
3. I'm On My Way
4. Drivin' Blues
5. Tell Me Why
6. End Of The Line
7. House Of The Rising Sun
8. I Want To Be Your Lover
9. Boozin' Blues

Frijid Pink are one of the lesser-known bands from Detroit's fertile late 60's-early 70's music scene that produced shit like the Stooges and MC5. However, instead of possessing a "proto-punky" (hate that term, yet I use it. I suck) sound, the band falls more under the stoner rock category, with plenty of fuzzed-out guitars and pseudo-psychedelics.

The record opens up with an odd ballad that, while very lyrically cheesy, is actually pretty good and is a great intro to the riffy "Crying Shame," which, along with "End Of The Line," is the band's finest original song on the album. Still, the band's pinnacle as a band is their minor hit: their rendition of "House Of The Rising Sun." The band takes the traditional song made classic by the Animals and drenches it with fuzz and reverb, making an already awesome song even better. Sure, the Animals' version is legendary (and great,) but to me, this is the definitive version of the song.

The band is at its strongest when it caters to its stoner tendencies, which, unfortunately, is not all the bands goes for on this release. The band often falls into the common 1960's/70's trap of white rockers trying too hard to be Black. Just when you're riding the high from "Crying Shame," the band breaks into "I'm On My Way," which sees these young men trying a LITTLE too hard to boogie woogie. When they take their influence from a lot of 50's music, it sounds too forced and is kind of embarrassing.

Overall, though, the awesome moments of this album are worth sitting through the bad. Or skipping it! "House Of The Rising Sun" is a classic. I think I first heard it on one of those Comcast cable music channels when I was in 7th grade. Good times.

Download Here

-Adam

Tammy Wynette - Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad

Artist: Tammy Wynette
Album: Your Girl's Gonna Go Bad
Release: 1967

Tracklist:

1. Apartment #9
2. Don't Come Home A Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)
3. Don't Touch Me
4. There Goes My Everything
5. Send Me No Roses
6. Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad
7. Walk Through This World With Me
8. I'm Not Mine To Give
9. I Wound Easy (But I Heal Fast)
10. Almost Persuaded

I'm not gonna front: I'm a newcomer to loving country. I got way into Hank like six months ago. But as the posters on this blog do, when I decided I wanted to seek out a whole new genre, I got down and fucking dirty. Flynn was the dirty mother fucker to show me Ms. Wynette and I love him for it.

Tammy is known as the "First Lady of Country Music." She was the artist that did the song "Stand By Your Man." Yeah, it's one of those songs that you've heard in malls and elevators but never really thought about. Start fucking thinking. There is something to be said (that something is "Kudos!") for solo acts that write their own music (edit: she didn't actually write this album, but she wrote others). If you're not familiar with country staples then you should check this out, or just wait for me to put up some more.

I don't know as much as a person that is reviewing this should. Just know that this shit gives me chills when I listen to it at night. "Don't Come Home A Drinking" is so straight edge and legit (those words are synonymous to me).

Download Here

-Trey

Nazi Dust - Self Titled 7"

Artist: Nazi Dust
Album: Self Titled 7"
Release: 2009
Label: Youth Attack!

Tracklist:

1. Hatred Side
2. Invest And Sacrifice
3. Fervor
4. Impulse Control
5. Bad Blood
6. Exhaustion
7. Ego Victim

It's been months since all of the unnecessary hype surrounded Nazi Dust and their debut 7", and, after all the dust (I RULE!) has finally settled, we can reexamine this release. No, this is not the best hardcore record of the year, nor is it, on the other, contrarian pole, utter garbage. Instead, the 7" is a solid offering of straight edge hardcore which is juxtaposed with a M********* aesthetic that is to be expected nowadays. Still, in sound, the band doesn't really fit that well with the Youth Attack! roster in that it's way musically straightforward.

The one thing that sets this apart from being (and I use this word with no negative connotations) standard hardcore is the vocals, which is the strongest part of the band. The weird bark of their ethnically-confusing singer (is he Black? Latino?? Blatino??? Sicilian with a tan????) is pretty insane and keeps me on edge, enhancing the music around him and keeping things exciting. Also, props to the killer guitar tone and leads.

Perhaps I'm in the minority here, but I prefer this to their demo, even if there's no DYS cover. The two best tracks from that, "Bad Blood" and "Fervor," make their definitive appearances here along with five other moshable songs that prove that the band is definitely capable of producing some great hardcore. The new material is definitely up to part with the old material. "Hatred Side" is an excellent opener, "Exhaustion" is particularly furious, and the intro to "Ego Victim" sounds frighteningly similar to Primus' "Wynona's Big Brown Beaver" and that is just AWESOME.

This 7" definitely capitalizes on a lot of the promise of the demo, which, truth be told, piqued my interest, but didn't do much more for me otherwise. I feel like the band still needs to be a bit tighter and more dynamic, but this is still eight minutes of excellent music. Get into it.

Let it be known that this is not that shitty rip of the 7" that was leaked on a bunch of blogs, but straight from the computer from which it was recorded. 320kbps, baby!

Also, does anyone know why Monteclair High School in New Jersey loves this band so much?

Download Here

-Adam

Drop Nineteens - Delaware

Artist: Drop Nineteens
Album: Delaware
Release: 1992
Label: Caroline/Hut

Tracklist:

1. Delaware
2. East It Halen
3. Winona
4. Kick The Tragedy
5. Baby Wonder's Gone
6. Happen
7. Reberryrememberer
8. Angel
9. Aquarium
10. (Plus Fish Dream)

Drop Nineteens is a band that lacked any real originality or even self-identity. They rode the shoegaze wave at its height (they are American, after all) with Delaware, then followed it up with some tepid indie rock on their sophomore album whose name escapes me, fortunately breaking up before they could do any further harm to their B-rate reputation.

Still, this first album of theirs is well worth hearing. Sure, for every brilliant moment there are three boring and/or uninspired ones, but some of the good outshines the bad. Their particular brand of shoegaze jocks equally from My Bloody Valentine, Swirlies, and Th' Faith Healers, sometimes working the theft into something great. The best example of this is "Winona," which is one of the best shoegaze songs ever recorded. It's totally a hit! I love this song with every fiber of my being and the line about Xanadu makes me laugh everytime I hear it.

Nothing quite comes close to the perfection of "Winona," but there are other highlights. The nine-minute "Kick the Tragedy" is SUCH a MBV rip-off, but it's still incredible if you can get past the chilly spoken word section. "Ease It Halen" is pretty sick too, as well as the cover of Madonna's "Angel." Not much else REALLY sticks out to me and I find myself skipping around on the album more than listening to it all the way through. For what it's worth, I do know that some people love this record. I just think it's hit-or-miss.

Check it out for "Winona" alone. And, while you're at it, "Kick The Tragedy."

Download Here

-Adam

Crazy Spirit - Demo 2009 CS

Artist: Crazy Spirit
Album: Demo 2009 CS
Release: 2009
Label: Self-Released

Tracklist:

1. Snakes
2. Black Shadow
3. In The Thick
4. Devil's Daughter
5. When Faces Change
6. Cool Death
7. Fledgefight
8. Slimey Leech
9. Blood Runs Fire
10. I'm Dead

Dear Diary,

Gloom, doom, rain, term papers. Hell is all around me and I have no escape. Luckily, there is the Crazy Spirit demo. Though I do not put "snakes in my veins" to "try, try to get away" (as go the lyrics to "Snakes", the opening track here,) I do take solace in finding the appropriate tunes to match my mood, in this case dementia.

Seeing Crazy Spirit live was unforgettable. They had this spectacular, tubular, warm, round sound that you don't get much at a punk show. It matched their bizarre brand of punk brilliantly. To this day I'm convinced that the entire band was dressed in First Nation revival style (I remember seeing war paint and feathers). In any case this demo rules.

Here are a substantial ten tracks of audio collage and demented mid-tempo punk which sometimes reminds me of the Germs, and at others DOA. Their rhythms are weird (lots of rolls and syncopated snare), their production quality is raw (cardboard studio style), and their songs are all pretty damn well-written. Walker, their vocalist sounds like Lemmy if he were a four foot tall baby trapped in an old man's body. Favorite tracks include "Slimy Leech," "Devil's Daughter," "I'm Dead," and "Snakes".

The band has several singles on the horizon coming out on Toxic State and Que Punk, so keep an eye out for those.

Download Here

-Colman

Slices - Cruising

Artist: Slices
Album: Cruising
Release: 2010
Label: Iron Lung

Tracklist:

1. Medusa
2. Nightmare Man
3. Red Raft
4. John's Public Hell
5. Floodlight
6. Robbie
7. Mike's Insane Problem
8. Guide To Incest
9. Laughing While Eating

Slices' debut LP was my most anticipated release of 2010, partially because I don't really ever know what's scheduled for release and partially because they're one of my favorite bands going at the moment. Their first two 7"s absolutely blew me away and it became evident that the band had captured the throne of Pittsburgh true hardcore warriorkings from the semi-inactive/inebriated Brain Handle (who still tower over most others.) I can say with confidence that with this LP, Slices have capitalized on the promise of their 7"s and have produced their finest work yet.

Crusing takes its cues from the 16oh 7" track "Cave Crawl" and the Home Invasion 7", which may come as a disappointment to those who loved their faster, more straightforward hardcore material. I guess that means they aren't hardcore warriors, then. Oh well. While I did prefer the 16oh 7" to the Home Invasion one, I must admit that the band did the right thing by following this path. Taking their Pittsburgh hardcore sound and marrying it to noise-rock a la Landed, the band has truly found its sound.

I find the entire record to be absolutely incredible and its only fault is that it's a little lopsided, as the A-side rules, but the B-side is flawless. The first side opens up with "Medusa," which is classic Slices and flows into the surprising "Nightmare Man." Whether or not the band intended for it, the guitar riff is straight-up pop-punk. It's certainly unexpected, but it works gloriously. As a matter of fact, it's not the quality of the A-side that makes it live in the shadow of the B-side, but more the sequencing, in that there are less conventional songs on it. Instead, the band breaks up the flow of things with the intro of "Red Raft" and the sound piece "John's Public Hell." It's not a huge flaw, however, and these moments are quite interesting, particular the latter, which sees the band getting back to its noise roots.

The band returns to its contemporary sound with "Floodlight," which signals the moment in which the record really takes off. Really, it could be easily argued that the quality of the songs grows as the album progresses and the album ends perfectly, with the one-two punch of "Guide To Incest" and "Laughing While Eating." The former is probably the best faster song they've released thus far, even surpassing "Nub City," but the latter is definitely my favorite thing they've ever done. Hilariously-titled and ultra-heavy, "Laughing" plods along in true headbanging goodness with one of the coolest guitar lines I've heard in awhile. Maybe someday the phrase "Cruising Side B" will be a normal part of the punk lexicon.

I can't really speak much more highly about this record. It's certainly not perfect, but it's no doubt a monumental achievement for the band and will definitely proof to be one of the best releases of 2010. Be sure to pick this up from Iron Lung before it's too late.

Also, download this particular link because it is from the masters, straight from the band and not some vinyl rip.

Download Here (re-upped!)
Buy Here

-Adam

P.S. I don't care what anyone says, I love the cover and I wish the bad masks had straps so I could actually wear mine!

Natural Law - Spring Trash CS

Artist: Natural Law
Album: Spring Trash
Release: 2010
Label: Self-Released

Tracklist:

1. Cheap Blood
2. Scholarship
3. Cold Comfort
4. Loss Of Freedom

In the realm of political theory, natural law is the theoretical antithesis of nomos. Or so I'm told. Instead of offering some sort of insightful commentary or cool allegory that ties these two political concepts to the bands named after them, and, in effect, writing a cleverer-than-thou blog entry, I'm going to pretend none of this really happened and curse myself for majoring in cinema studies. [Note: for clarity's sake: to be precise, nomos and natural law are not exactly antithetical, as nomos is an ancient concept (though re-appropriated in various contexts since then) and natural law theory is largely modern, though within the ancient greek understanding nomos (law, convention) is always opposed to physis (nature) and hence the notion of 'natural law' is paradoxical.]

Natural Law hails from NY/NJ and have dropped their first demo, Spring Trash, on an unsuspecting world. The band plays a brand of straightforward, dissonant hardcore, alternating between blistering ragers and straight-up stompers. The vocals are interesting in that they sound like the bastard offspring of the tough vocals of Blank Stare's frontman and the snottiness of Deep Wound's frontchild. They're not too sassy and have an element of nerd-warbling that I'm totally into it.

"Cheap Blood" introduces the band perfectly and is their fastest and most frantic song here. To continue with the unfortunate college motif of this review, the next track is "Scholarship." This is the band's most stompin' song, even if it is probably just about good grades and Halo. Does the title make it a nerd stomper? Yes. "Cold Comfort" is another fast song and is probably my least favorite thing here. It's not bad by any means, just pretty unremarkable. The band makes up for it with "Loss Of Freedom," though, which proves the band knows how to write some slower jams. Instead of bludgeoning the listener in the same ways as "Scholarship," it sounds more methodical, with a slight late-era Black Flag thing going on with the guitars.

Rambling about individual songs aside, this is a great demo. It's by no means perfect and I think it could benefit from some more diversity in the riffage, but overall this is a really cool demo and I highly encourage you to download it. If you live in the NYC area, the band is playing two shows in the near future: May 24th with School Jerks, Pollution, White Guilt, and Crazy Spirit, as well as June 10th with Pollution, White Lung, Ecoli, and Migraine. You can pick up your demos there. If you're lucky enough to live elsewhere, be sure to order them from the link below!

Download Here
Buy Here

-Adam

YDI - Out For Blood

Artist: YDI
Album: Out For Blood
Release: 2004
Label: Parts Unknown

Tracklist:

Out For Blood [Demos]

1. Out For Blood [Demo]
2. Not Shit [Demo]
3. Rizzo's Cumming Back [Demo]
4. Another Day [Demo]
5. Zombie Youth [Demo]
6. Mad At The World [Demo]
7. Friends [Demo]
8. Categorized [Demo]
9. Why Die? [Demo]
10. 1983 [Demo]
11. True Believer [Demo]
12. Snarling Hate [Demo]
13. I Killed My Family [Demo]
14. Get Up And Fight [Demo]
15. 8th Man [Demo]

A Place In The Sun 7" (Blood Bubble, 1983)

16. Not Shit
17. 1983
18. Friends
19. Mad At The World
20. Out For Blood
21. Categorized
22. Another Day
23. Get Up And Fight/Zombie Youth
24. Why Die?

Get Off My Back - Philly Hardcore Compilation (Red Music, 1983)

25. Enemy For Life
26. I Killed My Family

Black Dust LP (Blood Bubble, 1985)

27. Not Without A Fight
28. Get Out
29. Soylent Green
30. Violently Raped
31. Bloodletting
32. Haunted House
33. Dying Day
34. Murder Is So Sweet
35. In Ignorance
36. My Hell
37. Black Dust

In 2004, Parts Unknown bestowed upon an ungrateful world the discography of one of the most unappreciated bands in the history of early hardcore, Philadelphia's YDI. This compilation includes their seldom-heard demo, their classic A Place In The Sun 7", some comp tracks, and their oft-maligned, Crossover LP, Black Dust.

Out For Blood kicks things off with their demo. At this point, the band was still indebted to a more west coast hardcore sound, particularly with Jackal's vocals, which have less sneer and intensity to them than their later material and have more of a punky quality to them. Partially due to the fact that these are just demos, the band just doesn't sound as fast or as tough as they do on their future material. Still, these recordings are more than just for curious listeners or die-hard fans, as they are sicker than most bands proper material.

The best material the band ever recorded was their debut 7", A Place In The Sun. The band builds upon their demo sound and makes everything thrashier, heavier, and nastier. The band's frantic style of hardcore is completed with raging solos and awesome guitar lines. The band's best song, "Out For Blood," is almost unrivaled in its intensity. It's one of the most menacing hardcore songs recorded. Other bangers would include "Not Shit" and "Categorized," a song that addresses the prejudice and bigotry the band members had to face not only for being punks, but also due to the singer and drummer being Black.

Also on this discography are two tracks from the Red Music comp Get Off My Back - Philly Hardcore Compilation. The comp features, from what I can gather, some of the best Philly hardcore bands at the time. To be honest, aside from YDI, I had only ever heard of FOD. Oh well. The two YDI songs fall in line with their more hardcore sound, but have cleaner production and, particularly on the tough "I Killed My Family," a slightly more metallic edge to them, foreshadowing the change that was to come.

Like many of their peers, YDI caught the Crossover virus that felled many a great hardcore band in the mid-80s. However, YDI did not succumb to the dreaded scourge of the genre and their 1985 full-length Black Dust is actually a pretty great record. The band incorporates a good amount of Venom and Motörhead-style metal into their form, but, which its audience failed to realized at the time, still retained a mostly punk sound. It's certainly not as good as their 7", but it's not the utter failure some took it to be upon its release.

No matter what stylistic changes the band went through, YDI remains one of the better hardcore bands to have ever brought the mosh. Even if you can't get into the amount of soloing in Black Dust, at least Jackal's vocals were consistently sinister throughout the band's existence. And hey, YDI is proof that Philly isn't completely worthless.

Download Here

-Adam

Korla Pandit - Remembering Korla Pandit

Artist: Korla Pandit

Album: Remembering Korla Pandit
Release: 1999
Label: Dejavu Record Co.

Tracklist:

1. TV Show Opening
2. Turkish Dancer

3. Procession Of The Grand Moghul

4. Miserlou

5. Aicha's Dance

6. The Hypnotist

7. Trance Dance

8. Spanish Eyes

9. No Love Is Lost

10. The Rose Of Descanso

11. Black Orpheus Theme (Carnival)

12. English Music Hall Theme

13. Yours Is My Heart Alone

14. French Trio Theater Theme

15. Spinning Theme

16. Lara's Theme

17. Danny Boy

18. Remember

19. TV Show Close

Korla Pandit is known by many (read: some) as the Godfather of Exotica, the goofiest "genre" of music outside of Funk-Rock. However, Pandit's music is from pure novelty. A legend of early television, particularly on the West Coast, Pandit's music, while often incredible, is still incomplete without the imagery of his program, which often just consisted of Pandit staring into the camera, hypnotizing the viewer with his soul-piercing eyes and returning the Gaze back at the viewer.

The story of Korla Pandit claims that the man was born in New Delhi, India to a Brahmin priest and a French opera singer, while growing up in England and learning the piano. It's a romantic tale that, along with his television show, plays on our grandest Orientalist fantasies. However, in reality, Pandit was not actually Indian, but really just a light-skinned Black dude from St. Louis, as RJ Smith revealed in his article in Los Angeles magazine "The Many Faces of Korla Pandit."

Lack of authenticity does not detract from his craft, however. Pandit dazzles with his unique brand of exotica, playing original compositions of faux-Indian/Middle Eastern music or Western standards on his Hammond organ. The music itself is excellent, but when combined with the gaze of that beturbaned brown fellow is just overwhelming. The standards he performs, like "Miserlou" are interesting enough, but his original pieces are the most exciting. My personal favorite is "Trance Dance," but the self-referential "The Hypnotist" and "Turkish Dance" are not far behind.

This may be too out there for some, but I highly recommend this collection, particularly if you're a fan of exotica (though, you've probably already heard Korla Pandit), old keyboards, or for folks who are just in the mood for something different. Pandit is one of the most interesting figures in early television and, hey, at least he'll be forever immortalized in Tim Burton's Ed Wood.

Download Here

-Adam

Rocketship - A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness

Artist: Rocketship
Album: A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness
Release: 1996
Label: Slumberland

1. I Love You Like the Way That I Used to Do
2. Kisses Are Always Promises
3. Heather, Tell Me Why
4. Let's Go Away
5. I'm Lost Without You Here
6. Carrie Cooksey
7. We're Both Alone
8. Friendships and Love

A Slumberland record posted by someone other than Adam? Ge outta town. I'm not all up on their jock like my boy, but I definitely do back almost their entire catalog. Up to bat on this post is Rocketship. Straight out of Sac town, Cali, this band put out this jam, a banger of a single, Hey, Hey Girl, and a split with Henry's Dress before breaking up. Although the band dissolved, the bands head honcho, Dustin Reske, kept the name and started making solo shit with scab fill-ins.

For the three releases, Rocketship was straight killing it. They do indie pop of all varieties. The first track, "I Love You Like The Way That I Used To Do," is a blazing up beat gem while the next track and my personal fav, "Kisses Are Always Promises," slightly slower depressing beaut. The 60's indie pop shtick mixed with droned out organs, airy transitions between songs, and impressive lyrical content (especially by indie pop standards) spells out destruction for all competitors.

This ones for the grown and sexy.

And for Sara. Her, Flynn, Adam and myself bumped this jam on the way to Atlanta to see Floor last weekend. Yeah, you jealous. David from CR (linked to my fav release by them) is rad. Thanks for putting us up!

Download Here

-Trey

Nomos/The Men Split CS

Album: Nomos/The Men Split CS
Release: 2010
Label: Vinyl Rites

Tracklist:

1. Nomos - Omar Hammami
2. Nomos - Andrew Joseph Stack III
3. Nomos - Dale Nixon (Black Flag)
4. The Men - Twist The Knife
5. The Men - Impish
6. The Men - Walking Out On Love (The Breakaways)

Vinyl Rites provides us with a split tape of two of the more exciting Brooklyn bands going at the moment: hometown drunks Nomos and the unpredictable and versatile the Men. Both bands end up each contributing two originals and a cover and this material that far outshines their previously recorded output.

Recorded by Will Dandy along with seven more songs for their upcoming one-sided 12" on Deranged, Nomos' new set of songs blow the old material out of the water. The songs are meaner, faster, and more relentless, all while the production is fuller, lending itself well to their particular brand of wild hardcore. The real star of the show is their vocalist, G-Baby. I felt the vocals on the demo were somewhat affected, but his vocals on this are so much more raw and soul-bearing. The lyrical content is far superior this time around, concerning terrorism, domestic and abroad, with the real-life quote "I am hatred" from "Omar Hammami" being particularly powerful. In the end, their new recordings are exponentially better than the demo, and, believe it or not, the 12" songs even trump this release.

Truth be told, I was expecting Nomos' side to heavily outweigh the Men's side and I couldn't have been more wrong. Don't misunderstand me, I thought the Men were great, but this is their dirtiest and nastiest shit as of yet. These songs, recorded directly to a 4-track, rage just as hard as the Nomos side; "Twist the Knife" is probably my favorite song on the whole split and the instrumental "Impish" is exhilirating throughout. With three prolific songwriters and two new LPs coming out soon, it doesn't look like the Men can be slowed down anytime soon.

Both bands also contribute a cover to the tape and it's hard to decide which is the intercontinental champion. Nomos brings the heaviness with an excellent cover of Black Flag's "Nothing Left Inside." The band really nails it, partially due to a cool guest appearance: The sick Ginn solo comes courtesy of Tony from Aerosols and SQRM. The Men pick something a little different with "Walking Out On Love" by power pop legends the Nerves [Edit: It's a song by the Breakaways, not the Nerves.] I don't really know what to say other than it's incredible.

When it comes down to it, this is exactly what a split should be. Neither band has to carry any dead weight from the other and both bands are stylistically different enough to keep things interesting. Very interesting. Both bands contribute their strongest material thus far and it's definitely one of the best releases of 2010 so far. Nomos and the Men will embark on a mini-tour in support of this tape on April 9-11, stopping in Albany, Boston, and Amherst. The tape is already sold out from the label, so your best chance to pick up a copy is from the bands themselves with the special tour version.

Download Here

-Adam

Ada - Blondie

Artist: Ada

Album: Blondie

Release: 2004

Label: Areal

Tracklist:

1. Eve

2. Cool My Fire (I'm Burning)

3. The Red Shoes

4. Livedriver

5. Our Love Never Dies

6. Who Pays The Bills

7. Each And Everyone (Blindhouse)
8. Les Danseuses
9. Maps
10. Cool My Fire

HEY HEY HEY, MEINE UBER FRAU! Another appropriate shout-out from ICDT to all the spinning females! MORE RESPECT TO YA!

Ada is another gorgeous gal from Deutschland, like Ellen Alien, who produces vocal/poppy electronix. Her album, Blondie is a mixture of glitchy minimal and melodic techno. The beats are very simple and contain all the elements of a techno cliché, except for the glitch (reminds me of Gameboy sounds), which makes them worth while. Also, all the beats have the snare on the 2 and 4, high hat on the “&”, and bass on all counts, making this album very easy to dance to. The album contains two amazing covers: Everything But The Girl’s "Each & Everyone," and The Yeah Yeah Yeah’s "Maps."

Every track on this album is an A+, except for "Who Pays The Bill." Can anyone get into that one? It seems like it doesn’t fit at all in the album. Cool My Fire (I’m Burning) is my absolute favorite. The vocals confused me at first because of the German accent (I forgot to mention the vocals are in English). Both Adam and Sara (a person you don't know) can attest: at first I thought she was saying “don’t read about my design gallery”, but she obviously says “don’t read about my desire”. I pray to Allah that my hearing isn’t failing me! Oh, and another groovy track is Cool My Fire. The beginning sounds like something from the Legend of Dragoon (Playstation I).

Download Here

-Johnny B

Dude Japan/Weed Hounds Split 7"

Album: Dude Japan/Weed Hounds Split 7"
Release: 2010
Label: Rok Lok/SNCL

Tracklist:

1. Dude Japan - Smile & Shut The Fuck Up
2. Dude Japan - The Storytellers
3. Weed Hounds - Hard Drivin'

Strong Island REPRESENT!

Just released on Rok Lok Records, this new split 7" features two of Long Island's better acts, Dude Japan and Weed Hounds. Dude Japan opens things up with their solid take on 90s indie. It's not mindblowing, but it's certainly refreshing to hear an indie rock band that loves bands like Further and the Cherry Smash rather than, uh, whatever it is the glut of shitty indie bands listen to nowadays. I'm clearly out of touch, but what you need to know is that this band loves some good shit and it shows. "Smile & Shut The Fuck Up" is a wobbly, jangle pop romper, though I'm not really into it, it's still somewhat enjoyable. The real winner on their side is "The Storytellers," a more melancholic and gentle take on their sound. If this was their only song on the split, their side would rival the flipside. Instead, I'll just have to start the record at the halfway point.

The Weed Hounds side consists of "Hard Drivin'," which is undeniable proof that the band is more than just a fluke with a great demo. The song is probably the most propulsive thing the band has recorded, though it still manages to break for brief, fragile refrains. This is definitely the highlight of this release and the main reason to check out this split. If you loved the demo, you'll love this. If you haven't heard the demo and are into shoegazey indie pop, then this is definitely for you.

This is still available from Rok Lok, so be sure to pick up a copy. Weed Hounds has two 7" single versions of their demo coming out, as well as a new single, Beach Bummed/Skating Away From The Cops, on Iron Pier which promises to be awesome. No idea what Dude Japan is up to, but "The Storytellers" makes me want to check out more.

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-Adam