Thursday, May 27, 2010

Bell Street


Bell Street is provincial compilation album from the Taranaki region made in the year 2000. The Agent is a one man band who dabbles in the eighties synth sound. Sync 24 is another solo project but techno oriented. Selling Kain are an actual band with Peter Murphy type vocals, guitar, drums and samples who veer on the alternative pop side of the tracks. Kitsch provide American 90's backwards baseball cap style pop-punk. Peter Jeffries easily has the most interesting track and probably the best known artist. Anita Anker Trio feature Jeffries on drum and do the female singer/songwriter thing in the style of Tanitita Tikaram or Melissa Etheridge. Kat - Nex Door is similar yet different and they're hooked on you.

Schizo Phrenia rock with a 70's female fronted punk sound somewhere between The Slits and Penetration or someone else. I'm scratching my head as to exactly who and you should get scratching to them to. Grab the popcorn as Tracer provide ambient movie soundtrack to a setting of wide open spaces, a snow covered mountain and green rolling pastures with a few hills, where both cows and sheep graze. An industial synthesized beat pulsateds through Kapital's track. Dave Edwards is that drunken stoned guy who probably writes poetry in his spare time, when he is playing sloppy but enjoyable guitar tracks like "Dope Smoke Wizard". Feeling a strange connection is Madison, another female singer/songwriter as is Channa Miriam with a silent C. Billy Ruben is the acoustic guitar alias of Sticky Filth's frontman/bassist Craig Radford. Chronic punk it up with more US style 90's skate punk. John Darling concludes the CD with a strong track featuring slow building sultry vocals.

Here.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Intemperance


Intemperance is a '92 compilation from the city of Palmerston North, New Zealand. Gravey play alternative pop and fall somewhere between R.E.M, Senseless Things and every jangly indie band that ever wanted to be signed to Flying Nun. Wholesale Drainage gave drinking red wine and spinning Sisters of Mercy records a rest to lend a dark gothic tone with their two songs. Master Cheese Maker worshipped at the altar of Mike Patton's Mr Bungle. The ghost of Ian Curtis sub-lets in Burnt Weeping Eyes. Fader have an admirable stab at the sparse vocals and lush fuzzy guitar pop. Cancer Maidens channel the Butthole Surfers. Hardcore punk anger representatives Sid Vishnu clock up two songs with snotty throated vocals. Loose yourself, it's time to dance to E-haw's screwed up dance music complete with sampling and chainsmoking whiskey soaked vocals. Punks, Motorsheep have a couple of live from the radio tracks. Sampling and electronic beats continues with Zero Tolerance who give advice on how to handle "Diesel and Fertilizer". Monsterworks end precedings with some Sabbat(UK) type metal. Unlike the other bands represented here, this band is still about and now based in the UK. Intemperance is like all small city compilations with the bad to average to good.

Here.

Beastwars - IV

After over a year off for various reasons, we have returned solely because we wanted to review the new Beastwars album. I really w...