Tampa Calling

1. Catatonic Youth – Piss Scene 7″ (HoZac Records): A scaberous three-track debut with fuzzed-out vocals, chunky basslines, garage guitar and weird noises to boot! This underground band pressed 500 copies of their single and sold out already; pressure them to make more! I am always attracted to boredom lyrics like “Nothing in this town nothing in this town nothing in this town.” The best rock n’ roll lyrics are 100% indispensable and 100% throwaway garbage at the same time.

2. Pierced Arrows – In My Brain/Caroline 7″ (Tombstone): The latest from ex-Dead Moon husband-and-wife duo with a different drummer still unrelentlessly encourages everyone and their sister to start a band with lo-fi rock n’ roll voodoo magic. Fred Cole has been putting out records since 1964 or so, making him the only figure from the ’60s garage rock scene to hear punk rock, understand it and do his own thing with it.

3. The Hospitals – Hairdryer Peace (self-released): The Hospitals’ second record combines sheer noise and cacophony with echoey vocals that are run through more processors than I’d like to think about. Not immediately accessible (but not snobby either), The Hospitals bash out their version of rock n’ roll like a post-apocalyptic mutant stepchild of the future throwing a shitfit, but somehow taking the time to ask some questions at the same time. Not looking back, Hairdryer Peace formally picks up the unenviable task of destroying music left over from their last record. A little more cohesively this time, I might add.

4. The Raveonettes – Lust Lust Lust (Vice): I did not like the first Raveonettes album. I saw them open for Interpol at the State Theater 500 years ago and their live show was very good. This album captures the washed out Jesus and Mary Chain sound much better with more varied song tempos, etc. Basically, the songs seem more honest and less forced than The Raveonettes I heard in the past and the duo (with guest stars I should probably know, I’m sure) just sounds like they are having fun and being more serious at the same time.

5. The Dirtbombs – We Have You Surrounded (In the Red): More garage punk from Detroit legend Mick Collins! The former Gories (and 30 other bands) minimalist pioneer succeeds with a mix of garage, punk and noise loops and twiddles mixed in to embrace a new era. Really fun songs about love and the apocalypse culminate into the closing track “La Fin du Monde” sung all in French with a beautiful hook and rhythmic stylings pleasing to just about any ear.

6. Mudhoney - The Lucky Ones (Sub Pop): Punk grungers Mudhoney come back from the dead by kicking out the long guitar meanderings and finding their way into some really entertaining, heavy songs. I think I heard it first in the New World Brewery Jukebox. (Thanks guys and girls!) Big hooks, chunky guitars and snide Iggy Pop-meets-Scientists vocals reminded me why I liked this band in the first place. I wanted to like their last couple of records but I really didn’t. Return to form but not exactly the same as they used to be like some gimicky hack band. Good stuff.

7. Be Your Own Pet – Get Awkward (Ecstatic Peace) = Same deal as their first record with better production values (that means not as good to me). Poppy (but not pop) punk with attitude. I saw this band twice and I think I heard they might be breaking up. I don’t know for sure, but their records are really good and fun. Because of the female singer, Be Your Own Pet instantly got Blondie references, which are completely off track. When people hear a female voice in rock ‘n roll, they immediately associate the whole body of music with other bands with female vocals. This trend illuminates our undying need to categorize things in terms of gender instead of reality.

I think I lost interest with this list and I can’t think of anything else off the top of my head. So seven is all you get from me! What are some of your favorites from this year?

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