I’m going to invent a time machine, seriously. Right….he’s some bit of text about some bands I’ve seen/heard recently yeah.
Ministers Dead
Punk rock played with a disdainful sneer on the face of everyone involved – Ministers Dead have a dense, taunt sound, similar to that of Hot Snakes, but are suitably erratic and scrappy when they hit their choruses. Some moments are reminiscent of garage-rockers, The New Bomb Turks, in their no-bullshit, trashy attitude. Live, they’re quite an intimidating prospect; vocalist Matt is a jittering ramshackle of a man; his voice falling somewhere between Jack Grisham of TSOL and the singer from Osker, albeit less slurred. They also do a decent cover of ‘Police Truck’; well worth checking out if you like the sound of early 90s, Nitro-Records punk rock scorn. Plus, singer Matt used to be in The Kramers, who were a great rock band, so you should listen to them as well.
Releases
Self-titled EP out at the moment, £2 at shows.
New EP ‘Made In China‘ is available through Diablo Records now.
Links
The Smoking Hearts
Bedford’s answer to The Bronx fighting Winnebago Deal in a tar pit, albeit thrashier and more beer-stained. The Smoking Hearts are going from strength to strength; with new singer (the mighty Ben Mills) fronting them, a truckload of new songs and a strong work ethic (read as: “let’s tear *insert name of town* a new one tonight lads!â€) Things are looking pretty damn ace all round. Their live set last weekend was chaotic as expected; with the whole band channeling a well-rounded mix of anger, aggression, intensity and more importantly, fun into their live shows, with the new material sounding heavier, meatier an even more deranged than the last time I witnessed their live onslaught. I heard from someone (and I’m paraphrasing here) that The Smoking Hearts wanted to be like “a faster a version of Panteraâ€- on the strength of this recent performance and the sneak previews of their new material, things are looking very much like cowboys from hell. Thrashtastic rock ‘n roll destruction.
Releases
‘Pride Of Nowhere’ , the debut album from The Smoking Hearts is out now; the band is currently recording new material for their second.
Links
Despise You
I discovered Despise You thanks to a link from my editor from another website that I frequently contribute to – and was stunned that I’d never heard of them before now. As you can guess, they’re about a subtle as a block of concrete thrown at your back. Punk as fuck from Inglewood, California; Despise You is a complete speeding-freight train of destructive rock and or roll hardcore threshing machine. Songs like ‘Roll Call’ involves that kind of Black Flag, jaunt of crusty-hardcore punk, with the enraged vocalist simply roaring “FUCK YOU!†at everything, but with the kind of malevolence that’s actually fairly disturbing. Musically, Despise You channel chorus-free blasts of terrorizing noise that will make you grin like some deranged bastard. Only ‘Fear’s Song’ from their split with Agoraphobic Nosebleed holds some kind of repeat pattern and shares a lot in common with 80’s hardcore.
Releases
‘And On And On…‘ a split with drum machine grindcore enthusiasts Agoraphobic Nosebleed comes out near the end of April.
Links
Despise You
Despise Facebook
Relapse
Despise You Cartel
So yeah, listen/check out/buy stuff from all these bands, because they’re seriously worth your time.
Lizard Hips
Junior Vice President of Keep It Fast. In other news: I work in social media, talk about dinosaurs, run a book club and have amazing facial hair. I am also a male man who is still not dead.
Follow Me: