COACH N COMMANDO – FBP!K!K!

cnc2016Coach N Commando are a two-piece act that are almost the dictionary definition of the word niche. These self-styled country punks create a raw sound that sounds like the deformed mutation of Lux Interior, Reverend Horton Heat and a toothless bluegrass hobo. Their 2016 release – their first for Brooklyn’s King Pizza label – is both intricate and ferocious; ugly and smart. Long standing fans will recognise a few tracks reworked from previous records, but rest assured that the re-recordings are an improvement at every turn. The eight songs that make up ‘FBP!K!K!’ play like disastrous musical travelogues retold via a telegram from a previous generation. With bad motels, dirt roads and broken relationships at the core, it’s like everything and nothing you’d expect from such an unholy alliance of sounds.

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JOE 4 – Enola Gay EP

JOE 4 EPWith a band name taken from the US nickname for Russian nuclear tests and an EP named after a famous bomber (as opposed to the poncy and rather smug Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark single from 1980), you could say that Croatian noise rock quartet Joe 4 are a rather angry lot. This, their first English language release – from 2011 – is somewhat of a hidden gem.

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SUPER LUXURY – Ten Solid Years Of Applause

super luxuryIn 2012 Leeds based noisemakers Super Luxury released a cassette EP that acted as a short and sharp assault on the senses, the musical equivalent of a kick in the nuts.  Not too long after, a couple of their members moonlighted as part of Cattle, an awesome noise-rock trio whose debut EP featured one of the best bass sounds ever committed to record.  Two and a half years on from their original EP, Super Luxury dropped this full-length release, ‘Ten Solid Years of Applause’. A couple of line-up changes – most notably the drafting in of bassist Tom Goodall from Cattle – has had a huge effect on the tunes as well as effectively blurring the lines between the two bands a little farther.  Perhaps due to the increased relation with Cattle, this second time around, SL sound far more assured.

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New Melvins album due in April

Everybody’s favourite noisemakers (the) Melvins will release a new album in April 2013.

Released via Mike Patton’s Ipecac label, the thirteen track effort finds Buzz ‘King Buzzo’ Osborne and co putting their stamp on works originally by David Bowie, The Jam, Roxy Music, Queen and The Kinks. Each cover is a collaboration with a guest artist and those roped in to help include Mudhoney’s Mark Arm, Jello Biafra and cult film maker John Waters.

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CATTLE – Cattle EP

2232570016-1From out of the silence, a lo-fi bass chord emerges.  Then another.  Then a couple more.  The quiet bass rattles gently for a while building expectation, yet giving little to no indication of what is to follow.   As the drums appear, a stoner-ish vibe sets the pace before a heavy syncopated beat takes hold – one which is easily comparable to the darker, moodier works of Primus.  …And for some, those funky few bars, will come to represent the most accessible part of Cattle’s self-titled EP.

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