bandcamp

Here's the theory: Inside every serious Aussie bluesman, prog artiste and serious muso type of an older demographic, there's a yob rocker waiting to break out and release his (or her) inner Thorpey. Turn it up to 11 and and yell: "Suck more piss!"

Some yob rockers do it with all the subtelty of a semi-trailer being driven through the wall of an outback diner, while others let their Sunbury freak flag fly with slightly more poise. That's where bands like Squeeze The Pig come in.   

"Are You Ready To..." is the second EP from Perth’s Squeeze The Pig and it’s a competent mix of Oz rock blues and ‘80s garage punk. Art rockers need not apply.  The band members’ ethos of fast bikes, cold beer and banging out four chords at the pub on a Saturday night is nowhere more apparent.

“On Ya Bike” is harmonica-powered blues-rock. Nothing more, nothing less. Vocalist Ian Laurie has that everyman sound to his pipes and the band is equal to the task. “The Band Is A Rockin’” mines the same vein and Steve Bee’s slide wraps itself around Peter Brown’s greasy blues harp. 

In the truest sense of DIY, this bedroom-recorded EP comes with hand-drawn inserts or a cover either smeared in blood or bearing glued-on pieces of a smashed 45. Shades of The Psychosurgeons with the red and white corpuscle edition and the music’s of a similar mind.

Alien Nosejob is Jake Robertson (of Ausmuteants, Hieropants and Frowning Clouds) and the four songs are bedroom recordings, augmented by a full-blown horns section in one instance. “Caffeine OD” sound slike early Devo on a meth trip with its stuttering guitar and jerky rhythms fitting perfectly. 

The Cramps tackled the topic first but songs about flies should proliferate in Australia. We’re infested with them. “Flyblown” marries an odd juvenile melody to lyrics about wanting to be a fly. It’s equal parts aggravating and addictive. “Sydney Sizzles” and “Over The Bridge” are a pigeon pair of punk rockers; the former doesn’t do a lot for me before the horns kick in, a la “Prehistoric Sounds”, while the latter scoots along like a Wipers tune before whipping itself into a furious breakdown with more horns. 

All in all, pretty wonderful and this Bandcamp link makes it so easy to procure. 

Venerable Australian label Half a Cow has moved with lightning speed to respond to the floods that have devasted parts of the Australian east coast this week.

One-hundred percent of the proceeds from the digital release of the quickly-assembled, all-Australian “Flood Zone” compilation will go to Queensland and New South Wales victims of the inundation, via the GIVIT platform.

Copies downloaded during Bandcamp Friday will be exempt from Bandcamp charges. It can be purchased here.

Participating acts are The Lovetones, Crow, The Ramalamas, Key Out, The Finalists, Darren Hanlon, Froggy Prinze, Bum Spa, Claire Birchall, Baby Blue, Montana, Tim Guy, Thee Cha Cha Chas, Adele & The Chandeliers, Turnstyle, Lost In The Woods, The Nature Strip, Monnone Alone, Victoria, Stressless, Bambino Koresh, La Huva, Smudge and Falling Joys.

Says label head Nic Dalton:"Thanks to all the acts for helping out! Some songs are old, some songs are new and some have never seen the light of day before."

Memento Mori - Hugo Race and Josh Lord (independent)

You shouldn't put “Memento Mori” on as background music while you do the dusting or writing funny memes. I mean, you can, of course. But it's a lovely slow-paced creature, and it will snare you.

You'll find yourself slouched on the couch, wanting sleep and comfort but... despite all the gorgeous sounds, it's damned unsettling. You'll wake with a stiff neck and your limbs out of joint, I promise. No, skip to the end for how to fully appreciate this.

But first, I must apologise unreservedly to both Josh Lord and Hugo Race. I was unable to do this review quickly enough. 

The new album from Chris Masuak and the Viveiro Wave Riders is out in early August on I-94 Bar Records and we’ve opened pre-orders. The lead-off track "1776" is embedded above. Place an order here.

“Address to the Nation” is full of trademark Masuak melodies and power with harmonies, a wide-ranging record where powerpop gems rub shoulders with bristling, muscular rock and roll, and punk. It’s in a similar vein to its predecessor, “Brujita”, but a touch harder-edged and more pointed, with lyrical insights about life, love and the sorry state of geopolitics, all powered by Klondike's ace Spanish band There’s also a healthy dose of satire, lurking deep in its grooves.

If you pre-order, your copy of the CD will be sent the day the album arrives back from the pressing plant. You’ll also receive a full digital copy, with bonuses, shortly before. If you're in the market for vinyl, we'll keep yuou posted. 

Space Travels – Sonic Garage (self released)

It’s a a couple of years since Circus Chaplains from Sydney’s Northern Beaches fell by the wayside after the passing of Luke Lovelock,but his bandmates Phil Van Rooyen (Dr Fruitworld, Panadolls, Chickenstones) and Peter Bourke aren’t ones for standing still.

They’ve gone on to a new band with ex-Mushroom Planet bassist Pete Trifunovic, drummer Ronny Welsh and pianist Russell Parkhouse (ex-Riptides).

Sonic Garagerecorded their album at Zen Studios in Sydney in these odd COVID times and it’s a wonderful, ragged and righteous collection of songs that recalls familiar Harbour City high energy rock reference points.

Gone Wrong - Son of Jaguar (Jagit Records)

This is a spirited collection of songs from a band of tree/sea changers living on the New South Wales North Coast. Assembled through a mutual desire to play music and drink beer in that nice part of the world, they’ve notched Album Number Two with “Gone Wrong”.

(Their first albuim is reviewed here.)

There are a myriad of influences at play – as you might guess from a band whose members’ experience includes playing in Headlifter, Grinspoon, King Pest and Mortal Sin –but Son of Jaguar sound like none of the above. “Gone Wrong” has melody and that distinctive Oz Rock rough-edged snarl, without the chugga-chugga rhythmic trappings.