Monday 8 October 2012

Kitchen's Floor - Bitter Defeat b/w Down 7 Inch


The latest release from Kitchen's Floor's ever-changing lineup is quite possibly their best stuff yet and easily one of the best 7 inch releases of 2012.

Released on the resurrected Negative Guest List record label, the vinyl release contains just two absolutely heartbreaking, bummer-rock jams; Bitter Defeat and Down.

The band has had an almost complete lineup change since their Looking Forward To Nothing LP release on Siltbreeze from last year, with Andrew Mclellan from Brisbane band Cured Pink joining on Organ and Robert Vagg taking over on drum duties from Joe Alexander (Loose Grip, Per Purpose, Bedroom Suck Records)




With each vinyl purchase comes two alternate versions of the songs, which were recorded before the death of close friend and Negative Guest List founder Brendon Annesley. The alternate versions sound somewhat more hopeful and cheery, recorded at almost twice the tempo speed.

Kennedy re-recorded the songs following Annesley's death, using the songs as a tribute to his friend's legacy.


The vocals are flat, off-key and full of reverb. The organ sounds like it is running out of batteries, but there is something about these songs that get me. Kennedy encapsulates the Brisbane soundscape like no other. These songs hark back rain-soaked days spent in a suburban garage sipping on leftover beer, bumming cigs and generally "not giving a fuck."


If you are at all interested in Kitchen's Floor or any of the amazing music coming out of the tropical capital known as Brisbane city then I HIGHLY recommend you buy this from their Bandcamp page asap. (edit: too late 7inch has sold out already. Only mp3 left)









Wednesday 6 June 2012

new shit and shit

I've been non-existent for quite some time mainly due to lack of access to internet as well as a new job working for the man. I've barely listened to any new music but I'll throw in some things I've been interested in...

LIQUOR STORE - YEAH BUDDY

Without a doubt my favourite new release of 2012 (even though I think it came out at the very end of 2011). Bunch of dirty garage punk from New Jersey bringing back the ghost of Jay and a healthy dose of nobunny's nasally vocals and king khan and bbq show's party looseness. Also giving Jersey some lost punk street cred after real estate dominated 2010 and 2011 with their jersey -shore-beach-chillz vibe.

After only a couple of little 7inches and some scratchy live bootlegs the liquor store boys cockily release this massive 2 x LP album. thats a lot of music, and it's all fucking good. 
here's a clip, but get the album.





Thursday 22 March 2012

Scott & Charlene's Wedding - Para Vista Social Club



This album was self released to 200 vinyl copies and shortly after frontman Craig Dermody went in exile to New York - no launch shows, east coast tours, nothing. Only whisperings of the album were overheard in the smoking area in between sets of forgettable bands when you're 4 schooners and 3 shots of whiskey deep and all you want to do is pick up or get a kebab.

Anyway, thankfully Bedroom Suck Records have decided to re-release the album for more people to hear, and Craig has returned to play some live shows as well as release a split 7" with newly formed Adelaide "supergroup" (that word is getting thrown around a lot lately) Peak Twins. (feat. members of Bitch Prefect and Wolf & Cub).

This is Flyning Nun/Clean style indie (whatever that word means anymore) tinged with grunge and pop music. Recommended if you like Eddy Current, The Clean, Twerps, Bitch Prefect

Thursday 15 March 2012

Flying Nun Records 30th Anniversary

It's been 30 years since the legendary New Zealand label started up. Known for such amazing nz bands as the clean, the bats, the verlains, the dead C, axemen and many more. If you have been wanting to check out some good bands from the flying nun roster but don't know where to start, here is an excellent youtube playlist to help you.

Saturday 3 March 2012

Three reasons why Canberra ain't so bad


For those who are not from here, Canberra is in fact the capital city of Australia (bet you thought it was Sydney eh?). It is a "planned" city that was selected as our nations capital in 1908 as a compromise between Sydney and Melbourne for the capital crown. It often seen by outsiders as a strange city full of war museums and backstabbing politicians. But hidden in the depths of seedy venues is an underground music scene that is starting to make people sit up and notice. Here are my three of my favourites...

1. TV Colours

The TV Colours/Assassins 88 split 7" is one of the best purchases I made all year. Here's why




2. Assassins 88

Assassins 88 were the band that I wasn't too familiar with when purchasing the previously mentioned split 7" but are now firmly in my top 5 "bands I must see live" list. They consist of only two members; A bassist and a drummer with a microphone gaffer taped to his face a lot like Lightning Bolt but less intense instrumental faced-paced post rock and more on the lo-fi/garage side. This is their latest 7" called Beach People on Canberra's best label Dream Damage


3. The Fighting League

These guys describe themselves as "Tropical punks" whatever that means. It's reminiscent of 70's british punk like the buzzcocks but with a much more aussie slant. This latest album tropical paradise is fucking great, another band to keep an eye on.

Friday 2 March 2012

Too busy for anything. Time for videos and wine

Is it just me or are we too busy to do anything we want to do? When it comes to listening to music nobody has the time to sit at their computer and listen to an album. And those who do aren't actually listening to the album at all, it's just background noise. I think the only true way to listen to an album is through the medium of vinyl, because that way you have to actually sit the fuck down and pay attention to the thing and flip it over. I now find myself sitting on the floor in the corner of my room, alcoholic beverage in hand (red wine, beer or whiskey) staring at the record rotating on the vinyl. It sends me into a weird meditation, and only at that moment am I ever truly listening to a record. Sure an ipod provides a nice soundtrack to train rides, car trips and lonely walks, but it will never have your complete attention.

Anyway, I'm slightly drunk again and rambling, basically what I wanted to get to was that people only really have time for music on the internet if their is enough visual stimulant to go with the aural. Hence why youtube video clips are so popular (as long as they are under 5 minutes - we got facebook statuses to update).

So to keep you motherfuckers interested I'm gonna drop some live performances I've been digging. enjoy, then go check fb.


This is Brendon Annesley's (RIP) band Meat Thump performing an excellent cover of V3's "Your Uncle". For some reason I like this even more than the original

Kitchen's Floor - "Back Home" - 18.12.2011 from Joshua Watson on Vimeo.

Matt Kennedy of Kitchen's Floor performing a solo set. Video by Joshua Watson

TV Colours (Live 21/08/2011) from Joshua Watson on Vimeo.


This is the amazing TV Colours from Canberra. Using his mustang guitar, a drum-machine and a heap of loopers and other effects this guy manages to make a one man show that I am envious of. The vocals are not the same as in his awesome split 7" (more reverb), but seriously I dig this...a lot. I implore you to watch it through to the second track and not be amazed at the looping skills as well as the amazing/heartbreaking song.



This is Boomgates (featuring Brandon Suppression of Eddy Current Suppression Ring) playing live at Repressed Records in Newtown. The video is by Matt Kennedy (Kitchen's Floor) under the alias Eternal soundcheck. Matt has already released a movie under eternal soundcheck that documents Australian underground music all through his home video camera. The sound quality isn't perfect and the picture is sometimes grainy, but I love it. Check out Brendan Suppression's awkward pacing and little dance. Oh yeah and that babe playing guitar is Steph Hughes from Dick Diver, who also happens to work at JJJ - I guess that place isn't completely evil. Still not gonna get me to listen to their tripe though...

Wednesday 29 February 2012

Various Artists: Artifacts Vol.1


Was just shown this from a friend, some excellent rocknroll/punk/outsider music. Here are some notes:


This 1976 compilation was transcribed directly from one of the earliest two-sided EvaTone Sound Sheets (pressed on translucent red plastic); the original master has been lost. One thousand copies were distributed in three-color, silk-screened gatefold sleeves.
We now refer to recordings made between 1970 and 1981 by the following artists and all the bands descended from the Artifacts/yclept community as "Analog Music from a Lost World." Newer, more comprehensive collections will follow this one.
Record conceived and produced by Dennis Madigan, drummer for X-Breed and later, Single Bullet Theory.




These are the original liner notes:
SPRINGTIME. The year is 2020. Nannaw is preening the robot and Ooompaw has just finished his nap. It is early afternoon, and Ooompaw is sitting there, transfixed. Nannaw can never tell if he is for real or "just cloning around." "I can almost remember...," Ooompaw keeps repeating, sort of to himself, but just loud enough for Nannaw to hear. "I can almost remember...Cross Brace, yep, and Big Nappy and Little Nappy...heh, heh, heh...yep, I can almost..."

NANNAW SUSPECTS it is time to take the bull by the horns. So she pulls out the old red disc from long ago, and she drops it on the box. Which is to say she gives the platter a spin. With the first chords of "Marlene," Ooompaw is up and hopping. "Circus of Terror" finds Ooompaw unsteady and for good reason. The cold sweat passes. Crank up the robot, Nannaw, it's time to "cop a buzz," hey? "On the Can" sends the little robot hurrying to the store for some "supplies," and Little Lacy beckons the cute little mutants from next door to dance, too.

AND SO IT GOES, on and on and on, down through time...Ooompaws & Nannaws of tomorrow, we proudly present these ARTIFACTS for your memory library. See you around. 

-- William "Montserrat" Burke (1976)

Tuesday 28 February 2012

Hysterics (Olympia, WA)



Who are Hysterics? Hysterics are a fucking house fire, a cacophonous explosion of hardcore punk. An all girl band from Olympia who would beat the shit out of you and take your money just for kicks. I could imagine these chicks spend their days listening to Poison Idea records while crushing cans of PBR or Olympia beer in dilapidated squat on the outskirts of town.  I'm infatuated with these girls but at the same time never want to meet them due to fear of looking like a total sissy compared to them.

Here's a video of them playing live at LA's The Smell




Demo+2010.zip

R.I.P Society Records


R.I.P Society are probably my favourite Australian label going around. Everything they release is fucking gold. Their founder Nic Warnock seems like a pretty chill dude who obviously digs good music, and plays good music himself in his band Bed Wettin' Bad Boys. I managed to stumble across their soundcloud page, so I thought I'd pay homage to the legendary label and embed some of my favourite RIP bands. 









Unity Floors - Womens Golf (Sydney)


Unity Floors make music in the same vein as Sonic Youth, Pavement and a heap of other 90's noise/no wave bands. They had built a reputation around Sydney as being the band that supports every other band for every show. Now is their time to take the headline position.

Give it a listen for yourself. You can also buy this record in hard vinyl format for the bargain price of 10 bux off their bandcamp page. I did...

Kitchen's Floor - Lonliness is a Dirt Mattress (Brisbane)


Brisbane is making some amazing weirdo/punk/outsider of late, and Kitchen's Floor are my favourite of all them, possibly even my favourite band in Australia. They play pissed off bummer punk for the unemployed that goes well with the dreary city of Brisbane - full of discontent youth and a burgeoning punk scene. This is their first LP that was released on RIP Society and Bedroom Suck Records. Their newest LP has been picked up by Siltbreeze in the USA for vinyl release and Bedroom Suck in Brisband for the other duties.

This is probably a shitty rip as its only twenty something mb, so if you remotely like it go out and buy the record and listen to it in all its lofi budget beauty.

...also if the band wants the link down I will take it off with no hesitation.

Here is a sample of KF's music, the awesome track "116" which is from their recent LP "look forward to nothing."



try.

Taco Leg - Printed Gold (Perth)


I just picked up this the other day from Repressed Records in downtown Newtown. It is a 7inch that was released on Philadelphia's richie records/testosterone tunes. Basically, Perth's taco leg play crusty no wave punk that is constantly compared to Fang - so much so that there is a Fang cover on this that kicks ass. This is three songs that are all excellent aussie punk.

give em a listen

Useless Children EP (Melbourne)


I can't seem to get enough of the female vocal high speed hardcore punk. Hysterics is an excellent Olympia band that comes to mind. But Melbourne's Useless Children aren't far off. The first song off this EP is brutal, but so perfect. I don't need to write more, not that you'd read it anyway. Check them out.

Turns out these guys have a heap of releases and are all available to listen and buy from their bandcamp page. Here is the EP in its entirety

RIP Brendon Annesley



Brendon from Negative Guest List zine died about a month ago, there is nothing that I can say about him that hasn't already been said. I'm just grateful that he gave me the chance to get an article into NGL. There is some excellent tributes to him by DX, Tony Rettman, Terminal Boredom, MRR and Mess and Noise. There are also some excellent tribute compilations for him, here are some of my favourites.

Sydney band Low Life who have a 7inch on NGL records: http://alowlife.tumblr.com/post/16972659188

And Vice magazine's Tony Rettman who writes the awesome Rettsounds blog made an excellent mix:

Bed Wettin' Bad Boys - Best Band in Sydney


I haven't posted for a long long time, and two all three of you that read my blog, I apologise. I have moved to Sydney to pursue the bullshit career of music journalism. Will I fail? Probably. But least I'm out of the hellhole known as the Gold Coast. 

I'm going to post more punk music on here, I barely have any, and that is sad for someone who claims to listen to a lot of punk. In celebration of moving to Sydney I'm going to post the Bed Wettin' Bad Boys who are an amazing punk/garage band on the awesome RIP Society label. Truly the grime on the bottom of your boot at the end of a Reatard's gig kinda punk, and for that I salute them.