[NT!]

ahh yes i have that album too, i don't think i ever listened to it much. will give it a go later.

this thread also made me bust out a few other records from that era - Braid - Frame and Canvas, Samiam - Astray, and Avail - Dixie. Two other standbys that this thread reminded me of, which I have been listening to often but felt compelled to mention, are

Hot Water Music- Fuel for the Hate Game - sort of an early post-hardcore release from this Florida group, anticipates some of the more anthemic cadences and pop-punk hooks of their later albums, but is more complex, challenging, and rhythmically diverse. the bass playing on this record is as good as that on any hardcore or punk album i can think of - some really interesting and intricate bass lines that add a lot to the songs without being distracting. i struggle to find an apt comparison for these guys, kind of like a busier fugazi in the rhythm section, while the vocals and leads are more like other punk-core acts like Avail or H20, but more melodic, better harmonies, and better lyrics. this album is in my top-five of must-own 90's indie releases.

Leatherface - Mush - Frankie Stubbs always sounds angry about something, even though the subject matter of this British punk masterpiece is more wistful and abstract than his tone would suggest. he just has a harsh, expressive, wonderful voice, like a punk-rock tom waits whose volume is stuck at 11. you know what you're getting with leatherface - crisp, attacking leads and dueling guitar parts over driving up-tempo arrangements. sounds like the clash covering nick cave. another must-own record.


hope you guys don't mind these trips down memory lane. i think listening to these bands really informs your ear if you are into some of the current stuff, a lot of which i find bland and derivative. (i suppose every crotchety old elitist [censored] thinks the same thing so don't mind me.)