Saturday, November 30, 2013

Thanksgiving (Abstract Dictation) 11/30/13


Testing really
Yes yes Noel is Kyle this is just
Visible been doing a whole alive line beers Lady was like hey what's going on like WTF Jerry found out okay okay okay okay love you so what now The Jerry Boger wednesday Siegel
Fuck is unlocked are Jerry not right now I Cavalieri home honey I think I'm starting to look at you with totally different
Variety to the linoleum category
Bread winners where is well made it back from you
And the beaches make pages

We stormed the beaches and ate the peaches

She calls it a hug but I call it mounting"

By Jerry giving like demonstration I will do push-ups he was injured. Jerry go get a work out after all just like every cowboy right now hey I tried to explain is Nathan she believes and your smile her I try to fill Kalvesta for piggyback ride on a regular won't know what want to go to Mount Rushmore and shoot the nose of one of the fucking president note
Obligate I think I'll take the dude in the glasses.Teddy Roosevelt right oh more it makes me think acquit The guy didn't want to 34 faces why did the guy do some motherfucking face lazy fuck it's none of that Jodeco buffet so Redmound did the small faces no basis
Mount Rushmore stop it was partially why because he was there a little defensive nothing back
You should go
Plato
Yeah figure Berrynoll many traders world they have added the casino Raisina the fish them alternate at the casino in enabling Pennywright
Want to do the last lap
The end

Thwart Internship: Meet Nicolas Perkins


Having the drive of wanting to do more and lacking the self-discipline to set personal deadlines, I have designed a five month plan for Nicolas Perkins beginning December through April 2014 in the form of 200+ word mini-articles as 'guest-post' on this blog. 

Many of you may know that Nicolas Perkins who plays guitar in Cha Cha Chachi and has been previously published in a Milk Money... But you should. He is a great guy.

Upon completion  of the five guest post by April on Thwart, Its hoped that the drive to start his own blog or maybe even zine will be firmly implemented.

If not, well at least he tried.

Substitute (Treatise)


yes-were-open.jpg

Rome fell in the year 476 to barbarian hordes... One of the widely coveted treasures of the time was spice.

"You should take some sweetener from the table for your coffee tomorrow morning" she whispered to me. True, I was out of artificial sweetener for my morning coffee... I grabbed approximately eight packets of NutraSweet and placed them into my pocket.

NutraSweet isn’t an idea substitute for a substitute like Apriva, which is a Kroger’s store brand substitute for Splenda, but it will have to make due.

These times at the end of the American Empire are HARD TIMES now, just as the times were hard for Rome in the year 475.

Every empire falls. Raids for treasures continue.


A YES! WE ARE OPEN sign was displayed in the window of the automatic door almost heroically.

[Past-Blast] [Blank Generation- November. 2001]





Reviews from Blank Generation originally published in November 2001
Note: Images added to certain reviews for cosmetic purposes in 2013

Spits "S/T" CD

I’m not that upset over news of a Le Shok brake up anymore. Sure, I mean, FUCK... Le Shok were a great band, but what I realize now, after randomly getting this CD to review (Heh, one I didn’t buy! Go fucking figure!), things are getting better, or hell, maybe I am just opening my fucking eyes. I can’t remember when I have been so excited about modern music than in this year - 2001. Here I am in November (the November-Ember-- ON FIRE), with The Blank Generation yearly recaps just around the bend, and I’m still getting blown away by shit filtering its way towards me.

The Spits (1st LP) (CD) ~ The Spits (Artist) Cover ArtI’m finding them, and they are finding me; you know who you are. Sure, The Spits are a Ramones and Screamers hybrid. Sure, that’s easy to see. The thing I’m really trying to convey is that even though this CD is lack-luster in its appearance and simplistic in its approach, it’s right up there with Kill the Hippies to me. Seventeen minutes and twenty-three seconds long… It’s ironic that as the cold war  kid who worried over things like nuclear holocaust and radioactive satellites, would love such a release. I read in a book, when I was twelve non-the-less, that it would take just a little bit longer than the time needed to listen to this CD before atomic warheads plastered with ‘CCCP’ on their side would begin to hit targets in the continental states. I knew that when I was twelve. Thank Ronald Reagan for my Nuke-hysteria.... So, with that said, that means when I first opened this CD in the mail that I could have sat through more than five continuous waves of Russian Warheads before I stopped listening to this CD. I opened it and listened to it all the way though in one sitting....
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Then I hit ‘play’ again and listened to it all the way through.
Eight fucking times. Then Seventh Heaven came on.... Man, what a fucked up family.
The next day my buddy Andy the Assault Rifle calls and I tell him about the CD. The day after that him and a guy known as Microbe find a copy of the CD for sale at Shake It Records. He buys it and two days after that Microbe secretly surprises me by cranking up his stereo as "Black Kar" begins to play. I scream and say, "Fuck yeah!" as I hold my left hand up for a high-five and bring the right hand, full of a can of Steel Reserve to my lips.
SLAP! Microbe hits my hand.
SLAP! The Assault Rifle hits it next.
SLAP! Microbe and the Assault Rifle High-Five.
"Black Kar" has given way to "Saturday Nite" and even though it’s a Friday nite, we repeat the act all over.
We’re drunk-- Well, I am anyway; drinking Steel Reserve, listening to The Spits and giving each other high-five’s in an apartment in a neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio. Things are getting better, if nothing else, because of this very fact!
Honest. When I got that Briefs/Spits split, The Briefs were good BUT The Spits were GREAT! They did more with their two songs than most bands could do with an LP’s worth. Even now, with a full-length worth of Spits songs, The Spits do more with NINE songs than other bands do in their entire lifetime. I mean, FUCK! The Spits are saviors!
This CD is blast after blast of Neoteric Punk/Wave balls to the walls lunacy. Every song is a fucking Nu-Classic! "Dropout" - If I don’t feel like quitting my job and being a good agoraphobic after listening to a song like this, well, I ain’t worth a fuck! "Sk8" - I can’t even ride a bike, but I wanna grab a board! "Die Die Die" - Answer to my prayers..... "Black Kar" - I never thought a song about nazi War Criminals would be so damn entertaining! Should have been on the soundtrack to Apt Pupil... "Saturday Nite"... "Remote Kontrol" - the song I just told Joe Domino I would use to play over and over in the headphones of pop-punk kids that I abduct and subdue until they swear to stop playing bad music.... "Tired & Lonely" - Leave me at the bottom! If I don’t feel like killing myself after listening to a song like this, well, I ain’t worth a fuck! "I H8 Pussies" - A song I can respect.... "Suzy’s Face" - I feel like there’s a sequel in there somewhere... I’m waiting for "Suzy’s Hands" on the next CD...
What it all boils down to is that there’s a time and a place for everything. Sometimes it’s not the extremely complicated things that makes you rock, there’s validity in saying that silence and simplicity is a weapon. The Spits fulfill. The Spits complete. The Spits deliver.
The Spits are better than you. You bastard. You panty-waste. I can do that now because rock bottom never felt better.... (SAB)
(Nickel and Dime Records PO Box 555712 LA, CA 90055)

Backstabbers "To Eleven" CD
THE BACKSTABBERS - To Eleven CD
What you have here is a ‘big’ sounding punk-rock and/or roll band ala Turbonegro. The key word is th
ick. Thick guitars… Thick drums… Thick vocals… I ponder on what would have happened if Turbonegro never happened at all... It seems to me that bands like Turbonegro, by merely existing, told bands like this that yes, you can listen to bands like AC/DC and use emulated forms of 70’s metal to make a viable and acceptable sound in the latter punk scenes of the 90’s/00’s.
As gruff and tuff as The Backstabbers sound though, by the second song I heard a little bit of emo shining through. Yes, I said ‘emo’. The song in question, "The Thrill is Gone", reminds me of what Rites of Spring would have become IF you replaced Minor Threat with Turbonegro in the early Dischord scene-- Wow, imagine that Alternative universe!!!! Great fucking song....
There’s some pretty solid sounding tracks on this CD, "Keep On," "The Thrill is Gone" and "Saturday Night Shootout" are just a couple kick ass examples, but some of the same garage-Turbonegro-death-punk type themes on To Eleven as other recent releases by bands, are wearing a bit thin with me... Last cigarettes, bad relationships, self-destruction.... It’s not like it’s JUST the Backstabbers doing this, but that same subject matter is becoming whimsical in the related ways that AC/DC LPs are. There’s a time and place for bands like the Backstabbers, and whereas I foresee a huge re-surgence of hardcore just on the horizon (prepare everyone), death-punk isn’t dead and the Backstabbers prove that. (SAB)
(Deadbeat Records POB 283 LA, CA. 90078)

Bhopal Stiffs "(1985-1989)" CD
Bhopal Stiffs - (1985-1989)
If it sounds like Pegboy and rocks like Pegboy, then it’s probably Pegboy... Well, it’s not ENTIRELY Pegboy, but very well could be… Ever wonder where Steve Saylors and Larry Damorefrom Pegbo
y came from? They came from The Bhopal Stiffs. Me, I’m not what you would call a HUGE Pegboy fan, but I liked what they were doing up until Strong Reaction. After that I just moved on.
This twenty-eight track CD captures the entire ‘Stiffs Discography and sweetens up the deal by including one unreleased track and a slew of decent sounding live shows from various sources. Like I said up there, you know, up there, in the beginning, it sounds like Pegboy. If you like Pegboy then you will like this.
Did I fail to mention that this sounds like Pegboy? Well, it does. It also sounds like Naked Raygun a bit; the OTHER band members of Pegboy came from.... Strange…
Did I fail to mention that this sounds like Pegboy? Well, it does. (SAB)
(www.harmlessrecords.com)
(Harmless Records/Redline Distribution 1218 W. Hood Ave. Apt. #2 Chicago, IL 60660)

C*nts "Your Funny" CD
I like this. I really, really do. The first seven tracks are mid-tempo/fast Killed By Death type punk-rock numbers bringing to mind a mixture of The Pagans and The Eat with Gibby Haines from The Buthole Surfers singing... Around track eight; a tune called "Drive Until Your Insane" (which is my favorite track by the way), things change a bit, and whereas I don’t want to say they changed for the better, because I really dig this, I will say that they change for the different.
"Drive Until Your Insane" begins its life with a mid-tempo beat but expands about halfway through into something I can only describe as ‘near reggae/dub’. It kinda surprised me too because by this time The C*nts are obviously crazy, as most musicians are, and have odd and apparently dangerous ways to look at life’s simplest things. But here they seem to dumb themselves down and explode into a sibilant, naive and agitated sound, setting the stage for my mind to begin wandering with imagination to a place, a world in my mind where I explore the realms of armed robbery for KICKS. It’s a dream of mine, but yet something I would dare not do: build a crime syndicate, rob a bank and hit the road....
It wasn’t until this song that I started to think of the C*nts in Neoteric forms... The C*nts surprised and attacked me. From "Drive..." on, the remaining seven songs take on a looser, improvisational feel to them. This CD was really arranged perfectly because from song one til’ "Drive..." you get a certain sound that is building up to something that you aren’t quite sure about. You’re left wondering what’s next. Then, after "Drive..." you hear a more Lewis & Clark C*nts, one that takes their sound and lyrics to the fucking cliffs edge and throws YOU off. Exploring… Explorers… It’s these latter songs that really bring out the Buthole Surfers/Gibby Haines sound.
I’m not really too sure what my Blank Generation Year End Top Ten list has in store or anything, but I’m thinking the C*nts deserve a spot there somewhere. This is a great fucking CD. I mean that. Like I said, up there, in the beginning, it’s good. I really like it. What you should do is find out how much Disturbing Records wants for this CD and get one...and I got to thinking.... Chicago isn’t THAT far away from Cincinnati… (SAB)
(Disturbing Records 3238 S. Racine St. Chicago, IL 60608)

Hypochondriacs "Feelin’ Fine" CD
PART I
Since hearing the Hypochondriacs (or just plain ol’ ‘The Hypo’s’as as I will refer to them here from time to time) for the first time in the summer of 2000, I have been a fan. They might not have been in ‘tune’ at the time but that was something I respected them for. They went on to quickly tune before their second song, but they had already won me over; too fucking late. Besides, I was the only one who wanted them to continue to play out of tune. After all, it was only a daytime show in a fucking park near a go-nowhere loser town of Hamilton, Ohio. If punk-rock is about anything it would be about uncomfortableness, inconvenience and the indefinite struggle with one’s self and their surroundings. This, all of this, is the story of the Hypo’s.
The Hypo’s cut their teeth on sets of mostly covers including The Misfits, and The Ramones, with a few originals to boot. They slowly began introducing more and more originals into their set, and in the process, weeded those covers out. This was something that would seemingly place The Hypo’s a level or two below even pop-punk bands, because even a bad, really bad pop-punk band is still writing and performing originals. Patrons of the Cincinnati punk scene have a hard time watching a band and seeing POTENTIAL. The first time I saw The Hypos, they played about 12 songs. Three of those were originals, but the thing is they were really GOOD originals. Powerful, intense, great fucking songs! I saw The Hypos for what they truly were... They were not JUST a COVER band; they were a band slowly maturing to greatness. Over time the band really began to click with each other at their live shows and it sort of seemed that all of a sudden The Hypo’s were playing sets chock full of hard-hitting originals. The Hypochondriacs have become a force to be reckoned with!
This CD marks the beginning of a new era for this band. This CD captures The Hypo’s earliest songs in their rugged entirety: "Simple", "The Rents", "Sweet Sugar" and "Rachel and Jimmy", songs that each continue to deliver the goods listen after listen, round out Feelin’ Fine to keep the CD flowing perfectly from start to finish. Feelin’ Fine exposes The Hypo’s hidden strengths for all to see. In just a few seconds over twenty-three minutes, The Hypos serve up a sense of being that shows a rare, true to life look at midwestern punk-rock. The Hypochondriacs are a band that understands the cracked and decaying urban slum-berhoods of the University of Cincinnati; the areas ripe on the weekends with college level crime, alcohol, drug and self abuse. The Hypos carved out their niche and their songs reflect that.
With a sound falling somewhere in-between that of Bikini Kill, The Misfits and Black Flag, The Hypo’s are like a symbolic puddle of puke.... Dirty, filthy, sleazy, but at the same time HONEST. As with all unattended vomit, The Hypos grow stronger as time passes. Recently, at a CD release show for this CD-R, The Hypo’s played a couple new songs including one titled "Shut Up Bitch." If this song is any example of what the future will bring for The Hypochondriacs, watch out! Make no qualms about it, The Hypo’s have raised a big stink around Cincinnati, and if things fall in the places where I expect them to, Feelin’ Fine will stand the test of time and be recognized as one of the best testaments of Cincinnati Punk Rock.
PART II
Neoteric FAQ: Are The Hypochondriacs Neoteric Punk/Wave?
Yes, even though the Hypo’s guitarist Tim has his doubts, claiming that through his eyes, The Hypochondriacs are JUST a Rock and Roll punk band, the decision is up to me. Remember, I ultimately have that decision all to myself. With full power veto capabilities over the NWD (Neoteric Wave Directorate), I am fully prepared to pilot and guide the Neoteric Punk/Wave to greatness.
"Yes, The Hypochondriacs are Neoteric," I tell Tim as I sip keg-beer from a plastic cup at a party.
I continue: "If for no other reason than you consider The Hypochondriacs a rock and roll punk band. You see, nowadays the genres of punk rock are watered down and homogenized to the point that Korn are considered ‘punk rock’. With this being so..."
I take a sip of the beer halfway through because when you are having a discussion with someone like the one I was having with Tim, it makes you look more organized and smarter. Believe me, I need all the work I can get.
Tim, a Hypo guitarist, doesn’t think The Hypos are neoteric.
These songs scare me because... Some would say that makes me not a good person to review this release. The Hypo’s just are not a band I listen to and enjoy, I have their fucking phone numbers and I know them personally. I see The Hypo’s. I can smell The Hypo’s. I could even taste the Hypo’s if I wanted too. Bottom-line: I know The Hypo’s, I LOVE The Hypo’s.
If you don’t like Feelin’ Fine, you suck. (SAB)
(No Address)




[Past-Blast] [Blank Generation- October. 2001]

Reviews from Blank Generation originally published in October 2001 
Note: Images added to certain reviews for cosmetic purposes in 2013

Cuts "S/T" LP
Dobule zero psychedelica coming right at you with lightning speed.... The Cuts LP, FINALLY! When I first heard their debut 7" on Lookout Records a while back it really sparked an interest for this band in the ol’ noggin of mine. They seemed to have a sound that fit nicely into my burgeoning Neoteric Punk/Wave movement.... I could just see, in my head, their live set with a crowd of about 80% being bored out of their skull because they weren’t seeing The White Stripes and about the other 20% really getting off on what they heard. That’s the way it is… Playing music in a band isn’t about making EVERYONE happy, it’s about striking those few, the elite; getting the worthwhile off, and really just fucking with the rest. Fuck the rest.
So The Cuts decision to move closer to a psychedelic sound that seemed to bust out of them with their move to Texas might even have isolated even more fans from their sound, but fuck man, when you hear something rockin’, when you hear something that gets yer foot tappin’, when you hear something that makes you wanna turn up the fucking volume... THAT’S some good shit.
I’m seeing something, or rather noticing something - a resurgence in the psychedelica movement. I see it in my own hometown with bands like The Shams and The Greenhorns, and I see it furthered with the Cuts and bands unknown to my ears as of yet...
Last night, on the twilight of sleep I found that those five coke-a-colas I drank while watching Josie and The Pussycats really wired me up. I thought of a few points I definitely wanted to make about The Cuts and Rock and Roll Blitzkrieg as a label... I was worried that I would forget what points I was wanting to hit on concerning both BUT I was also NOT wanting to get out of the comfortable warm bed that had gripped me to write down a few notes to help my memory for the next morning... So I sleep through the night, each time I wake to urinate or whatever I ran through the points I was wanting to hit on in my head and by morning, believe it or not, they were still there. I did The Sleeper.
I wake from my slumber and turn on the TV. I mute the sound as I settle into a Teletubbies episode, place some headphones full of The Cuts on my head and just veg-e-tate. I listen to the music and watch the Teletubbies do whatever those crazy fucks do... Adventures and such… Real sureal shit… It seems to fit the music nicely. I have yet to see a band actually do a video using the Teletubbies set as a backdrop; like have the band set up their equipment and play in front of the Teletubbies bunker or something, but for some reason, despite me ever really seeing a picture of the band, I visually saw The Cuts ripping through a version of "Forgot the Question."
The Cuts are tough as nails. Their music is more 60-ish than the Lookout Records 7", but it’s really a pretty nice change. This LP is definitely Neoteric and at certain times when The Cuts seem to really brake out into some crazy shit, the band really shines. The Cuts sound is big, deep, layered and at the same time simplistic and devastating. "I Am The Spider", "Do The Sleeper" and the longer really out-there "Wind Up Bird Chronicles" are stand out tracks to me, but the other’s aren’t weak or anything....they are as up-to-par as one could imagine. The Cuts fucking cut!
This record is really a great release, a real treat to listen to. I have hit on several of those ‘points’ that I mentioned earlier but I have one more.... I am a big fan of Rock and/or Roll Blitzkrieg as a label; one of the few labels I really follow anymore... I saw this LP as a big hurdle for Rock and/or Roll Blitzkrieg as a label. It seemed with every release the RNRB mustered out, the Cuts LP was just held luminously in the back, waiting for its time, waiting for its moment. Delays... Delays... Delays... It all worked out for the best. The Cuts and RNRB took their time and delivered a FINE product! I felt that RNRB couldn’t move onward, in a ways of speaking until this LP was released. Well, that hurdle was overcome now. I feel NOTHING is holding RNRB back. It’s opened doors and smashed windows from here on out. Feel the cool San Francisco breeze baby. (SAB)
(Rock and/or Roll Blitzkrieg PO Box 11906 Berkeley, California 94712)

Defnics "Look At Me Mom I’m Not Dead" 7"
Defnics 'Look At Me Mom I'm Not Dead' 7-inch"Hello from Cleveland, its me again...."
Just because you are a band featured on punk reissue series like Killed By Death and Back to Front doesn’t mean you’re fucking special.... Look at the Nervous Eaters; more importantly look at a "reunion" release of The Nervous Eaters... I am talking about the "No More Idols" 7" released by Penniman Records (with a Y2000 copyright) a while back. Something tells me I review
ed this 7" for Blank Generation but I am not that sure, nor do I feel like actually researching that fact. I made a conscious effort to glance at the other Penniman Records ‘Eaters re-issues and compared that to the Y2000 release and found that they share only one common denominator: Steve Cataldo. If you’re like me this means nothing to you. I’m not, nor have I ever been a real "researcher" about all those Killed By Death bands and such.... But alas, that fucking ‘Eaters 7" blew chunks!
All of this is important because like The Defnics, The Nervous Eaters were on Killed By Death Volume’s two and three back in 1990 when I first acquired those FINE chronicles of music HISTORY. I have said it before and I will say it again, those two records shaped my fucking vision of what was REALLY Punk-Rock (with the dash)! I spent all this time talking about The Nervous Eaters in a review about The Defnics because the Nervous Eaters on that Y2000 Penniman Release was a pale comparison of what the Nervous Eaters ONCE WERE. One could look at The Defnics and wonder the same. I even had Scott Stemple e-mailing me and ranting about The Definics asked him to reform with them and how good their very own reunion show went and how the Defnics are back and shit... I was even writing updates with the help of Steve in my own zine. I was hyped beyond all get-out, but also still I had my doubts. Penniman burned me on The Nervous Eaters and as much as I hated to admit it, Smog Veil and this new Defnics thing could do the same....
Well, rest assured. This all-new Defnics, returning with two original members; Robert ‘Bill" Conn and Bob Sablack, along with two other Cleveland punk pioneers rounding out the line-up, including the aforementioned Scott Stemple and Mike Sherwood, is sounding stronger than ever! I mean that. Scott was right about all the hype!!!!
I listened to side two first, it’s a live version of "51 Percent" recorded at a recent reunion show in Cleveland. I chose to listen to this track first because I could easily throw on the Killed By version to see if it held up. That wasn’t needed though, attacking like a cheetah, The Defnics fucking rip through the song at brake-neck speed making me wished that I was there. Hell, I should have been there! I would rather have drove to Cleveland and spent $26 dollars a ticket to see The Defnics than the fucking The Sex Pistols a couple years earlier. That’s the FUCK-ING truth....
So, with side two out of the way, it was only logical to turn to side one, featuring an all new track. Like it or not, things were getting a lil’ bit crazy. If The Definics were to really prove themselves, justify their whole existence, they would be judged from this new track. WOW! Once again, a blazer! This track, "Look at Me Mom, I’m Not Dead", is a tale of survival! It is also a studio track! Since I know no band, no matter how big nor small goes into the studio to record JUST ONE song, my mind is running wild with the prospects of MORE material out there, floating around.
I know for a fact that this 7" precedes a Smog Veil CD that will compile the rare Defnics tracks along with unreleased recordings and who knows, maybe more tracks or hell, at least some more of those live fireballs that were sampled on side two!
So, The Definics are fucking back! It seems that the same sorry state of ‘modern music’ is leading to a new resurgence in this decade, re-unions, re-issues, re-vivals... Re.... Re-Punk!
Hurry up and get your copy, red vinyl and limited to 500! (SAB)

Gene Defcon "Come Party With Me 2000" CD
Come Party With Me 2000 (CD) ~ Gene Defcon (Artist) Cover ArtThis is a limited edition release, limited to 2000 copies. There’s 47 total songs, so this one is really packed with a lot of varied influences, but for the most part it’s like a modern mixture of early Beat Happening and Atom and His Package with humorous dark humor ALA The Dead Milkmen or The Minutemen. Warning, if you like rock and roll and the thoughts of one guy with drum machines, keyboards, guitars and god knows what else just REPULSES you, OR you can’t begin to comprehend that 1.) The person on the cover is a GUY (Eugene Defcon) and seems to have a near philosophy of ‘The Party’ worked out and talks about scoring with chicks LIKE ALL THE OTHER DUDED (but actually has respect for them) or 2.) One song actually talks about recreational use of ecstasy, then PLEASE stay away! This CD is very out there, very, very OUT THERE! I would be untrue to the Neoteric Punk/Wave itself if I was to ignore Gene Defcon as something OTHER than Neoteric. I mean, some may find it hard to see bands like The Piranhas and Gene Defcon sharing the trenches side by side, but I don’t.
Gene Defcon is adventurous. Lewis & Clark if you will… I will admit, not everything on this CD is right 
up my alley… But mostly if you don’t like a particular song, chances are before you realize you don’t like it, its over and who knows what’s next. Out of the 47 songs on this CD, there are some real hits, one in particular I must talk about, it’s a song called "Punks and Skins." This song is quite honestly one of the best songs I have ever heard. A different version of this song appears on the K Records release "Have a Good Time" EP as "Extension Woes." What can I say? It just does the trick! In fact, all the song’s from the "Have a Good Time" EP are here in different versions and of the only other Defcon release I have, which is also on K Records, "Baby Hallelujah", only the title track (as far as I can tell, because I am still going through all the stuff as I write this.) is a repeat.
Talk is cheap. My balls are hairy. You like what you see from the post-riot grrl movement like Sleeter-Kinny, or more in the neighborhood of Le Tigre, and like what you read so far, give ol’ Defcon a chance. Me, I’m hooked… I am however going to ask you, the avid Blank Generation reader to do one thing for me, when/if you see Eugene Defcon, shake his hand and pat him on the back for me and say, "Shawn Abnoxious sez well done." and two, tell him that I HIGHLY suggest that he read Radio Free Albemuth by Philip K. Dick.... E’vrybody’s in the party!!!!! (You must read the book to see why it is imperative that Eugene learns of this, just pass along the message fuck-head). (SAB)
(www.kpunk.com)

Goddamn Gentlemen "Sex-Caliber Horsepower" CD
Goddamn Gentlemen, The - Sex-Caliber HorsepowerWhiskey Fueled. Whiskey influenced. Voodoo. Black magic. Satan. Flames. Rock. Rock. Rock. Roll. Roll. Roll. Hot Rod Cars. Brill-Cream... I refer to every oldster hot-rod car I see at car shows or driving down the road as ‘57 Chevy’s despite their make and model or even brand. They are all ‘57 Chevy’s to me.
This is the second full-length for
 these Chicagoans. Well they aren’t really from Chicago, the press release plainly states that they are from Portland, Oregon but I almost left it as so just to fuck with those who would be fucked with by saying something as such.
The Goddamn Gentlemen deliver thirteen (oh, didn’t see that lil’ bit of rock and ’or roll culture at first) tracks of rip, rockin’ garage-punk MADNESS.
Balls
2
the walls.
How many of the five-man roster the Gentlemen field have tattoos including the number ‘13’ you think? I say at least two but no more than three. I will even go so far as to say at least one member has a leftist Anarchist tattoo of sorts, maybe the classic "Keep Warn Burn Out The Rich" logo....
All my jadedness aside, this isn’t a half bad CD. Imagine equal doses of rockabilly and 60’s rock mixed with The Candy Snatchers. There’s keyboards and organs and such, in one standout track in particular that I can almost guarantee will end up on my Blank Generation radio show (Coming Soon: SLAVE TO THE LOW WAVE), "Shark Attack"; there’s even some kick ass sax-o-mo-phone playing.... This release isn’t without its moments though, I see worthiness in the first track, "Odd Rod", and the last track "Duck, You Sucka", but what really got me off, other than "Shark Attack" was "Hip Snake Handler."
The Goddamn Gentlemen remind me first and foremost of a band I once knew very well here in Cincinnati called Waco A Go-Go. Cha-os!!!! Rock and Roll!!! Unfortunately the earth itself opened up and swallowed them alive.
The Goddamn Gentlemen: Rockin’ Roll enough for the Rockers and Rock-abilly enough for the Pompadours. (SAB)
(uppercutuecords.com)
(Uppercut Records 4470 Sunset Blvd. #195 Los Angeles, CA. 90027)
(K Records POB 7154, Olympia, WA. 98507)
(www.smogveil.com)

Le Shok "From LA to NY" 6"EP
References to a ‘death-drug’ and paranoid delusions that someone or mayhap a group of someone’s from New York City are after them, Le Shok attack on 6"s of vinyl.
A release like this is really for established fans. What you have are three songs with what has come to be expected from Le Shok; frantic guitars, sturdy drums, deranged keyboards and up-front vocals. Neoteric punk/wave at its finest! Le Shok just don’t play music, they use it as their weapon.
After building up a rather impressive catalogue of releases now, Le Shok continue to be a band that delivers consistently great releases. This EP features three songs all recorded live on KXLU radio in Los Angeles.
The first track, a cover of the best band to ever live, The Screamers "hit" "122 Hours of Fear", which is broken into two separate parts on Screamers releases but on this release, Le Shok combine both parts with fucking precision. By covering The Screamers and doing it so well, it’s going to garner even more attention for this band. The second side features the last two live songs of the release which have previously appeared on their debut LP, We are Electrocution; "Gimmie Something, Help Me Please", and an intense version of "Do The Dramatic."
Live, Le Shok is even more dangerous. I can see that now. There’s a certain level of looseness that one could expect from Le Shok. As once thought and expected by me, they use this looseness to their advantage. Due to a high energy level that I can also see in their music, these songs are delivered with a newness not usually expected with live releases. I really wish maybe Kapow Records would release the rest of the set or some other label like Deadbeat or Rock and Roll Blitzkrieg would maybe step up... I mean, FUCK! For the greater good of The Neoteric Punk/Wave! Doesn’t my words mean anything these days?
I know that in the near future, meaning the next couple of months, Le Shok have several releases planned. Just in time for my Blank Generation 2001 summary! If you have yet to latch onto what Le Shok are doing, do yourself a fucking favor dumbass... (SAB)
(www.kapowrecords.com)
(Kapow Records POB 1287 Lake Forest, CA. 92609)

Dialtones "Playing the Beat on the Radio" 7" EP
So what you have here is a three-piece Swedish punk band churning out three songs of blistering fast and snotty punk-rock with a nod to Killed By Death greats like The Nervous Eaters.
The title track is a scorcher, as well as the second part of a double A-Side, "All Night Long." The B-Side though, a Fun Things cover of "Savage", I see as less than lackluster because truthfully, I haven’t exhausted the store of forgotten 80’s New Wave. I’m not totally unfamiliar with bands like The Fun Things, its just that I haven’t gotten round to them as of yet. If the Dialtones did a cover of an Einstein’s Riceboys song or pushed out a version of "Oh Didn’t I Say" by Tubeway Army; THEN I could really discern the Dialtones ability to cover.... With "Savage" I am left wanting another original instead.
This isn’t the first time I heard OF The Dialtones and now that this 7" was thrown my way, I am keeping my eyes out for more of their releases, past and present. Overall, a great 7"! (SAB)
(www.dead-beat-records.com)
(Dead Beat Records PO Box 283 Los Angeles, CA 90078)

Smogtown "Domesticviolenceland" LP/CD
This, their full-length follow up to Furhers of the New Wave seems to be closer to the premiere Smogtown release (in my opinion), their Beach City Butchers 10". On Domestic Smogtown exhibit even more cynical approach to the life that surrounds them. Smogtown’s songs seem to be a saddening document of the further degradation of the American dream. They tell it like it is
. The truth is a valuable and rare thing these days. Smogtown acts as the antithesis to the vision and appearance of life as portrayed by The Beach Boys. Smogtown are here. Now.
Furhers was a good record, I would even consider it a great one, but it lacked in something that I and other music enthusiast blamed on production- blamed on production because it was easy, but no offense Mr. Peters because really, deep down, those same enthusiast knew that Smogtown were much, much better... They just weren’t showing it.
Then, after Furhers, the seemingly endless stream of Smogtown material in the form of 7" singles and EP’s stopped. It was almost as if Smogtown seemed to take a step back and re-group. A three song EP on Hostage Records was the sole release for Smogtown in 2000. In that 7" there was some liner notes alluding to a great Smogtown resurgence of sorts.... Then along cameDomesticviolenceland.
So, like the switch-blade new wave is back. The New Beach Alliance does not falter!!!!
This is a fucking great release! Smogtown keep the punk-rock (with the dash) flame alive. Some stand out tracks include "Neutron Blond", my favorite track; "Sneaking Out", "Breakdown Shakedown" the title track itself, "Domesticviolenceland" where Chavez sings, "This new development/ We’ll pack the robots in/Rows of printed houses/is the goal for them’...." Fucking eerie. Cutting like a modern form of DI in content, Smogtown’s music is the after effect of a movie like Suburbia.... If only Penelope Spherris would do a REAL legitimate sequel to Suburbia: 20 years after where we would find out what happened to the original cast lives and how they dealt with "growing up" and how some of them would interact with their children who would listen to bands like Smogtown...just a thought.
Really though, I knew I would like this CD from the first time I saw it. On the cover: A highly contrasted photo of the band that includes who I think is Chip Beef, Smogtown’s bassist, who is wearing a beret! Gear up!!!! Smogtown are back, but it’s like they never really left… Thank god. (SAB)
(Disaster Records)

V/A "Deadbeat Records Presents: Viva La Vinyl #4" LP
For those of you that are new to this "punk-rock" thing; stumbling across a site like Blank Generation when there just isn’t any action in the Blink 182 chat room, or for those of you that are COMPLETELY in the fucking dark, Deadbeat Records Viva La Vinyl series features a slew of bands paying a homage of sorts to the vinyl LP format and donating one song each for a compilation that according to Deadbeat Records will not be available on a CD EVER!!!!
Each volume features a different set of bands and at the time of releasing, Deadbeat urges each band to donate an unreleased track making the compilation even more eventful.
Somewhere just after the second installment and the third, The Viva la Vinyl series began to get noticed not only as a great compilation but as a sampler of what the current US of A punk scene is all about. Personally, I didn’t like EVERYTHING I heard on each installment including this installment too, but the whole thing is that there’s something for just about everyone on here. Besides, I think its a good thing if someone can listen to a Viva la Vinyl and NOT necessarily like everything they hear. This would mean that they are being exposed to something different and new than what they’d NORMALLY listen to... Yeah, I might not really like Bonecrusher’s track on Viva #4 or anything, but at least I heard them and know sorta what their about for future references.
I mean FUCK, this past weekend I had an excursion to an outlet mall in Jeffersonville, Ohio. I know, I know…how SQUARE, right? I have a uncanny knack for making the most seemingly safe and square task at hand, and putting a sinister twist on the subject and really turning such a simple thing as going to an outlet mall in middle-Ohio...fun!
I made the most of this weekend. Besides ripping the crotch out in my only pair of black pants (I like to lead a simplistic lifestyle) and STILL wearing them all weekend long, I had a rather interesting trip to a regional flea market where I saw three sets of parents threaten to leave, or beat their children into submission in the time span of an hour and a half. I even ended up getting in a car chase with some local yokel whose bangs were cut uneven... The fuck was riding my ass on I-71 Northbound despite me going 80 to pass a train of slow moving vehicles. I flipped him off as he passed me. After an exchange of him frothing at the mouth making punching gestures with his hands while driving, and me just laughing at the ability of me to make someone so damn angry, he urged me to follow him off a random exit for a rumble. At the last minute when he realized that I wasn’t going to follow him I executed a rather impressive move and exited the freeway. I drove around the exit’s mini-city of sorts for a while and made sure he continued Northbound. After several minutes I continued on my journey and when I got to the outlet mall, low and behold (!) there he was. I did observe as he passed me several large bags in his passenger seat so the way I saw it, since I seen the guy coming out of a store he had some sort of business at the same Outlet Mall. The yokel followed me and confronted me and called me names and a coward and tried to get me to fight him, but I just laughed him off and went to The Gap. I ended up moving my car several times in anticipation of him leaving to get reinforcements and coming back with some good ol’ boys to kick my camouflage shirt wearing ass, but everything was OK.... You see, I can make something so square like going to an outlet mall worthwhile!!! Well, while here I found a Music Discount store selling closeout cassettes for 99 cents. I don’t want to give it all away what I purchased because I want to do a Blank Generation radio show featuring tracks from my 99 cent cassettes, but one of the tapes was a metal tape I initially thought I would get for a friend who seemed to be favorable to bad-metal, but after listening to the self-titled release from Tyranny a couple of times I became partial to their Ozzy Osborne meets Rush meets Judas Priest sound. You see, despite not being into Bonecrusher NOW, one day, with thanks to a compilation like Viva la Vinyl, I might.
This volume features 15 tracks from the same number of bands with The Cock Spaniels, TV Killers, The Geriatrix (a local Cincinnati band; it was my idea to end their spelling of Geriatrics with an ‘X’), Gee Strings and The Dialtones peaking my interest, but also includes Puffball, The Hellbenders, the aforementioned Bonecrusher, The Valentine Killers, Snake Charmers, Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs, The Vultures, Hellride, Nikki Sudden (of Swell Maps fame) and last but never least; Flash Express.
Like I said, I wasn’t blown over by every band or anything... But at the same time, I really enjoyed listening to it. I think a lot of times the punk community as a whole really takes labels like Deadbeat and its Viva la Vinyl series for granted. In all the reviews I have read of the past volumes, I have yet to see one thing said to Deadbeat that’s in very much need of saying.....Thanks. (SAB)
(www.dead-beat-records.com)
(Dead Beat Records PO Box 283 Los Angeles, CA 90078)
(Smog Veil Records 774 Mays Blvd. #10-454 Incline Village, NV 89451)


Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Matt Kish Looking into a Heart of Darkness

There is no great secret that Im a fan of the movie Apocalypse Now. I've watched it maybe too many times that I will freely admit, but as Author and friend John Burris explained to me how it was based on a book called Heart of Darkness by a feller named Joseph Conrad... Then as serendipitous as possible as II was approaching the check out register at Shake It Records and noticed a new illustrated version of the book being spot lit as a 'staff pick'... Well, let's just say that one and one equaled mine.

As I would learn more about the Dayton Ohio based illustrator Matt Kish via social-media and later at a presentation hosted by Joseph Beth Booksellers, I would also find a new compatriot and peer in Matt who naturally AND humorously kept referring to 'Apocalypse Now' in place of 'Heart of Darkness'.

After a verily inspiring presentation explaining his drive, method and place in the order of being a published artist, he signed each book with a personal message as well as with a one of a kind sketch.

Below I have in.cluded pictures of the signing and link to learn more fab out Joseph Conrad. You can find your copy of Heart of Darkness as I did at Shake It Records and/or get signed copies with the individual sketches/signatures I explained, are available at Joseph Beth Booksellers.

Special thanks to Shake It Records' Joe Kuth for keeping me in the know.

Meeting Matt Kish at Joseph Beth Booksellers.
My personal signed/sketched copy.
Joseph Conrad 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Conrad




Monday, November 25, 2013

Lo Fi City Volume One: Hear the Queen Shitty Roar

Did you fart or do I smell Chicken?*

Welcome to Lo Fi City. Resistance is futile.

Somewhat rushed for last minute free distribution at the Second [Annual] Northside Record Fair, Lo Fi City Volume One not only surprises me in its range and diversity but also the unifying factor that brings this project together as a group. Despite my controversial-but independent re-opening of the cold case investigation concearning the student on student novelty pencil anus penetration on a a West Chester [Lakota] school bus-- I have stumbled upon a group of newcomers to the ever growing Cincinnati Music scene with the interesting common denominator being their point of origin: West Chester. Now that same group has an identity and soon to be electronic pressence known as Lo Fi City. 

Reeking instantly of the Dangerhouse compilations from the early 90's, the Lo Fi bunch had grown up not only penetrating each other's orrifices with school supplies but kept their tape decks active with that whole grunge thing as well as (I suspect) listens of Pixies, Beat Happening and Sonic Youth. From the same minds behind such great local bands as Homemade Drugs, Dinosaurs and Thunder and Little Trees and many others (still figuring out the whole thing myself-a totally separate investigation). Lo Fi City Volume One features 10 tracks ripe with splatterings from folkish indie punk to dissonant full on art-punk ragers. Every track is high-point after high-point and no sooner does this compilation start playing than poof! -its all over. Lo Fi City Volume One leaves you going thru the motions of hitting replay or, put into olde tyme ancient late 80's/early 90's terms, flipping the tape over. 

Despite its rush as a giveaway, there's an imminent bandcamp page coming soon where you will be able to feast on these tracks yourself.  In fact, I rushed this coverage of Lo Fi Volume One out front, ahead of that page. I want you to hear it here, from THWART, first... This is good shit. Beautifuly good shit... Novelty pencil (eraser tip) kind of shit and it smells amazing. I recommend this and cant wait to see where this project goes. Hopefully, not in the shitter and yes, I mean that-- this time-- exactly how it sounds.

https://www.facebook.com/LoFiCity?ref=profile





*Yes, it was chicken after all.

Asking The #HardQuestions (Investigation)

Traversing the blurry borders of humor and paranoia, maybe I'm looking too deeply into the possibilities that Siri may be alive... #ceptDifferent

Friday, November 22, 2013

Tyranny is Tyranny “Let It Come from Who it May” (LP+DL)

Duty calls. I must go get the trashcans. It’s Monday morning. My gas, as in flatulence, smells exceptionally bad. I may have to have a bowel movement later…  All the cars going up the hill and down the hill don’t notice a guy using a BBQ lighter whilst lighting up good the good smoke. A river of headlights goes up the hill and red-tail lights go down the hill. Every moment has a setting... and a soundtrack.

Madison, Wisconsin’s Tyranny Is Tyranny and their long-player Let It Come From Whom It May is thee soundtrack. A soundtrack of an introspective trip while dragging in garbage cans. The same trashcans that lost their wheels sometime ago. I just drag them to and from the curb each week. I feel as if a crime may be involved. The wheels were there once and I cant recall a time where I said to myself “Hey, me! What the fuck happened to those wheels?” They didn’t gradually wear down, they were there once, and are not there anymore. Were these wheels an artifact that’s already been sold out to museums? The smoke is on the water and fire is on my eyes. 

On Let It Come Tyranny is Tyranny attack with hard hitting burst of speed and force immediately leaving room for minimal harmonies that are given enough space and time to get their point across launching from one song to the next on an adventure of new thinking that really isn’t new, just new to you. Politically charged and steeped in leftist principles celebrating the proletariat class but not so fucking left that you swing back around to the right, on Let It Come Tyranny Is Tyranny create a double serrated edge with song and harmony. Existential striking minimal. Whatever works ALWAYS works you motherfuckers reading this. Utilizing the screamo-ish hardcore bringing to mind Trigger era Soul Side (Dischord, 1988) and screamo kings Rites of Spring (Circa 1984-86 Washington D.C.) this long player has brooding ominous overtones and nervy crescendos as Tyranny is Tyranny exhibit using Dischord Records as building blocks. Notes have been taken. lessons have been learned.

Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin aka George Sands1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876
Tyranny Is Tyranny play catchy, loud and abrasive (as it should be) hardcore and keep bringing to mind some hard-hitters in the vein of Pain of Mind by Neurosis (Alchemy, 1987). At other times, I’m reminded of the amazing hard-as-fuck Hellnation just a tad. I mention that because amongst Phratry’s sounds and ideals and ethics. A local greater Cincinnati band like Hellnation not only deserve, but cannot ever be acknowledged enough, in their commitment and execution to not only this areas scene and Phratry Records but also on a wider multi-national level. This LP is another winner for Phratry building on a very strong foundation. 

Be prepared, on Let It Come each song is a fight, a trial and eventual victory that I feel like I need a drink of water afterward… Intense and moody like Pink Floyds Darkside of the Moon except with rage. Also included in the LP is the per usual free download and a good olde tyme political leaflet… A bona-fide political statement! Cant figure out what instrument George Sands plays in the band. Maybe she is a friend of the band or something. Seriously, before this record I did not know who George Sands was, after this record and a Wikipedia article later I did… George Sands plays inspiration. Lots of bands like this get accused of ‘preaching to the converted’ but you know what? Sometimes, if you just allow yourself to admit it, you may actually learn something from records! Oh yeah, just in case you’re wondering, that bowel movement did come later after a few turns of this record. Coincidence?

Tyranny Is Tyranny on Bandcamp



The first TWO people who print this page and deliver it to The Phratry Records Merchandise table at Rakes End win a FREE Tyranny Is Tyranny "Let it Come From Whom it May" LP.

Monday, November 11, 2013

Fall into The Fall Without The Fall (Playlist 11/10/13)


It's that time of year... Leaf blowing weather. I expected the grand A.I. to provide a like-minded play list for such an event; a time of year. This time of year... I expected more songs by The Fall to just show up magically and play at random. That didn't happen. as with artificial intelligence, it proves its own sentient self by learning how to let you down.





Dikes of Holland
What a motherfucker.

Bold= from (Greater) Cincinnati 
Bold & Italic= from Ohio (Proper)

Rotten Taste Dikes of Holland
                          Live at WFMU on Talk's Cheap, Aug 28th 2012
Hiway Man BLUE CHEER
                                             "Good Times Are So Hard To Find"
Now Is Not the Best Time Thee Headcoats Elementary Disc 1
Mother Sky CAN "Anthology 1968-1993" [Disc 1]
Sitting In A Car BANG! BANG! "Brothers of the Head"
Still All Alone THE MONGROLLS "Truth of Dare"
Maraschino 1-800-Band (none given)
Milk KINGS OF LEON "Aha Shake Heartbreak"
Track 14 QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE
                                                       "Songs For The Deaf"
No Gracias C.AARMÉ "C.AARMÉ"
Men 2nd WIRE "Chairs Missing"
I Dont Know THE GREAT DISMAL SWAMIS "S/T" 2013
State Of Remote Control CD TRUTH
                                                           "Completely Destroyed"
Zero YEAH YEAH YEAH'S "It's Blitz!"
Return The Gift GANG OF FOUR "Entertainment!"
New Teen Anthem LES SAVY FAV "3/5"
Do the Strand ROXY MUSIC "For Your Pleasure"
Witch Hunt THE MOB "Let The Tribe Increase"
Rocks Of Sweden Trial By Fire VA - You Weren't There A History Of Chicago Punk 77-94
Mr. Suit WIRE "Pink Flag"
Stay Limp RAISINETS "30 Seconds Over DC"









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