Second only to a great punk compilation, split releases are a great way to discover work by new bands, or else bands that might have slipped under your radar. This particular split release is a great primer for two acts who fit firmly under the Ramones-core banner, both geographically opposed but united in their love of simple and direct punk-pop. Issued via Swamp Cabbage Records (home to Caffiends, Up For Nothing and Gnarly Whales), the ‘Smile of the Tiger’ EP brings four fantastic previously unreleased tracks from Austria’s DeeCracks and Eastcoast US punks The New Rochelles.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
MEMORY IN PLANT – An Epic Triumph EP
Rarely content to settle, the sounds on this debut EP from Tel Aviv based avant-garde collective Memory In Plant are almost as surreal as their choice of sleeve art. Their music is spasmodic, electric and occasionally just wilfully difficult. That’s not to say for those of a certain disposition it won’t have entertainment value – in between the jump cuts and experimentation, pieces of great music creep through the cracks – but ‘An Epic Triumph’ is not always the easiest listen.
BIG HUGE – Don’t Be Shy EP
On ‘Don’t Be Shy’ – the second release from New York’s Big Huge – the band blends punky sensibilities with a ferocious new wave energy that instantly conjures up images guys decked out skinny ties and sunglasses. Pulling various influences from the end of the seventies, the five songs on the EP throttle past at a speed that’s pretty impressive. Imagine Kurt Baker in a garage band playing after a weekend long amphetamine bender, or the tunes from the long-unreleased album by Texas power poppers True Hearts played at three times the speed and you’ll be halfway towards the band’s core sound.
WITCH CHARMER – The Great Depression
The debut EP from Sunderland’s Witch Charmer – 2013’s ‘Europhoric Curse’ – presented four slabs of top-class metal. As a near-perfect example of the more accessible end of the doom metal/occult rock genre, they needed to work hard to surpass its greatness on any follow-up recording.
GREASY HEARTS – Greasy Hearted EP
In March 2014 lo-fi garage rock combo Greasy Hearts released their self-titled debut EP. Recorded on a meagre budget, the six numbers captured the band in raw form, driven by self-belief and pure adrenaline. Live shows quickly followed and the New Jersey based quartet began to pick up a greasy following. Within months, they were back in the studio recording a follow up release.