FIDLAR - Down N Out

 

1. Who are FIDLAR?

FIDLAR are an influential garage/punk/surf rock band from Los Angeles, California. They have played together since 2009 and have never managed to better their high-tide mark of the lead single from their second album 40 Oz On Repeat (2015). Down N Out (July, 2024) is one of a few singles from their fifth album Surviving The Dream (Sept, 2024). 

2. What has Down N Out got going for it? 

Down N Out is a little bit of a return to form, a sweet surf-pop Beach Boys-style tune done by a garage band that have lost relevance and the sun is setting down on their backs. The spoken-word breakdown is putrid and indicative of a band stripped clean of ideas.  The lyrics are fucking whiny too. But all told Down N Out isn't completely vile; it remains passable for the intro that has a spectral sense of urgency, it's playful bouncy pop tone, and for the ghostly echoes of the excitement this band once conjured. 

3. Which bands do FIDLAR sound like? 

SWMRS, WAVVES, Bass Drum of Death, and The Frights. 

4. Which bands influenced FIDLAR? 

The Black Lips, Beastie Boys, Weezer, and The Hives. 

5. What is the word on the street about Down N Out?

"A sunburnt surf punk track with propulsive guitars and tongue-in-cheek spoken-word banter" - Prelude Press. 

"Sounds like classic FIDLAR" - Punk News. 

"An excellent single" - Kerrang! 

"Nodding out in a car,

Cause I don't give a fuck"

BRONCHO - Keep It In Line

 

1. Who are they?

BRONCHO are an indie rock band that's sound wanders around the place but are themselves from Norman, Ohio. They started playing in 2010 and Keep It In Line (October, 2018) is a single from their fourth album Bad Behavior (October, 2018).

2. What kind of song is Keep It In Line? 

A low-fi melodic cruise with hints of garage rock, a wheedling line about behaving yourself and cooed over with sunny sweet vocals. Bit of an earworm. The band are a personal favorite of mine.

3. Who do BRONCHO sound like? 

They have been mentioned in the same breath as The Strokes, upbeat songs by The Cure, and Generationals. There's a bit of The Clean in there for me too like in this banger Try Me Out Sometime (2012).

4. Which bands have influenced BRONCHO?

The Beach Boys, Billy Idol and The Strokes.

5. What have the press said?

“Singalong anthems that combine punk and garage-rock”- Handing Love.

“An infectious song about practicality and accountability” – XS Noize.

“A high energy and is very danceable” – Song BPM.

"You got caught and ya gave it away,

And then I cancelled on ya"

The Frights - Crutch

1. Who?

The Frights are a garage band from San Diego, California. Crutch (May'18) is the first single from their third album.

2. What?

Standard issue surf punk noise. Mixes melodic, suspenseful, verses with full-tit, rock out choruses; with a modicum of expertise.

3. Who do The Frights sound like?

SWMRS, WAVVES, and FIDLAR.

4. What have the rags said about Crutch? 

“A pummeling, high energy track” – DIY. 

“Chugging guitars come head to head with cymbal smashing percussion” – The Line Of Best Fit. 

“Incendiary first excerpt” – Son Of Marketing. 

5. Which bands influenced The Frights?

The Frights were influenced by bands like Rancid, The Offspring, Black Flag, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Social Distortion.


6. Why should I listen to The Frights?

Because you don't have enough surf punk in your life. Because you like your punk hey diddle, diddle, straight down the middle.


7. Do The Frights have any other good tunes?

Hell yeah. Kids is basement punk with a rockabilly side done right.


8. Anything else?

Nah.

For better or worse State Champs are a popular version of American pop-punk. They are from Albany, New York, and have been playing together since 2010. Bands typically associated with State Champs are All Time Low, 5 Seconds of Summer, and The Wonder Years. Their influences are Jimmy Eat World and Fall Out Boy. Dead and Gone (April'18) is the lead single from the State Champs' third album Living Proof (June'18). Dead and Gone is the type of cotton candy State Champs have teased in the past but, now they have gone all-in. It's bombastic, meaningless, vacuous, trite, shite. As contagious as a hobos foreskin in summer though. A guilty pleasure (the song not hobos foreskins Charlie Chaplin).

The Crispies - Ring My Doorstep (feat. Superfertig)

1. Who are The Crispies? 

The Crispies are a garage/punk band from Vienna, Austria. They have been raising Valhalla since 2014 and Ring My Doorstep (March'17) is the fourth single from their debut album Death Row Kids (Oct'16). 

2. What kind of tune are they kicking it with?

Ring My Doorstep is a primal re-invention of Queen's Will We Will Rock You; stripped down to the bone and with grit not glam. Hip hop and punk rock come together into a song that swaggers into the party, oozing intensity and as cool as fuck. Slam-poet Anna adds some twist to the vodka.

3. Who do The Crispies sound like? 

The Orwells, PARTYBABY and The White Stripes. 

4. What is the good word from the press in regards to Ring My Doorstep? 

“Loud and raw” – Spill Magazine. 

“We call it strut-rock” – Super World Indie Tunes. 

“A punk manifesto” – FYH.

5. Which bands have inspired The Crispies? 

They have some love for Ezra Furman and Bass Drum Of Death.

6. Why should I listen to Ring My Doorstep? 

Because you love We Will Rock You. Because you want to listen to young wolves tearing it up. Because you want to listen to a band that matters.

7. What are The Crispies best songs?

Bad Blood is visceral. Noose'N'Go is a lackadaisical rattler. Outta The Sun races out of the blocks, primitive and dangerous. 

8. Any last words? 

The band all graduated music college together and are all left-handed. Makes for a convenient circle jerk.

“Said I’m lookin’ for a girl, need a woman”

St. Tropez are a garage punk band from Amsterdam, Holland. They have been tearing it up (in their recent reincarnation) since 2014 and have one long player in the vault. St. Tropez’s favorite music varies from Dinosaur Jr. and Wilco to Bach. They sound like Beck crossed with The Stooges. Democracy (Feb’17) is the lead single from their E.P. Debate (Feb’17) and is a greedy garage riff backing a hip hop influenced vocal delivery with a harsh word to say about the current political climate. 

“Are you scared to fight? Are you scared to choose?”

SKEGSS - Spring Has Sprung

1.    Who are these happy few? 

SKEGGS are a surf/garage/punk band from Byron Bay, Australia. Spring Has Sprung (Dec’16) is the first single from their third E.P. Holiday Food (Feb’17). 

2. What kind of song is it? 

Spring Has Sprung is a bubbly, low-fi, garage-rock song with cruisy melodies and surfy harmonies all wrapped up in a sun warmed towel. A sweet flower of a song.

3. Who do SKEGSS sound like? 

FIDLAR, Hockey Dad and PAWS.

4. What is the word from the press about Spring Has Sprung?

 “Rock’n’roll for the laid back and carefree” – The AU Review.

“A raw DIY punk anthem” – The Music.

“An energetic cut” – Under The Radar.

5. Which bands have influenced SKEGSS? 

FIDLAR, Dune Rats, Hockey Dad or DMA's maybe. The cunts aren't talking.

6. Why should I give Spring Has Sprung a lash? 

The song is a cute, whistle along tune that embodies the essence of making fresh, joyous, discoveries. 

7. What are SKEGSS best songs? 

Spring Has Sprung is the best but L.S.D. isn't too shabby.

8. Any more words?

SKEGSS were the first band signed by Ratbag Records, the label started by the iconic Brisbane band Dune Rats. 

“Spring has sprung in the summer,

All the girls take their clothes off”

Dune Rats are a garage punk band from Brisbane, Australia. They have been playing together since 2011 and have recorded the two albums. The Dune Rats are similar to FIDLAR, Violent Soho, WAVVES and SWMRS. They are influenced by FIDLAR, The Ramones and Cloud Nothings. Bullshit (May'16) was a stand alone single and a banging, singalong, punk party anthem.

“Everything you say is bullshit”

PARTYBABY - New Years 2014 On A Beach (Felicity)

1.    Who are these heroes?

PARTYBABY have landed. These ubermensch are an indie rock band with sides of punk, glam and garage. PARTYBABY fly out of Los Angeles, California. The men have one mini-album to their names, The Golden Age Of Bullshit (Sept' 16). New Years 2014 On A Beach (Felicity) is an album track.

2.    What’s this New Years 2014 On A Beach (Felicity) like then? 

A passionate song of love lost that alternates between police-siren urgency and a big fat wallow in heart-break. All accompanied by the usual tsunami of guitar PARTYBABY are famous for. A brief old school drum and chorus breakdown too. A fucking classy effort.

3. Who do PARTYBABY sound like? 

At the minute FIDLAR, VANT or even SWMRS. It must be the All Caps. Back in the day Green Day, Weezer and Smashing Pumpkins. It must be the ability to whinge when you've got it good.

4. What have the press said about PARTYBABY? 

“Flag-bearers for a whole generation” – DIY.

“Raw and authentic” – Ones To Watch.

“Undoubtedly and unabashedly, the real deal” – Paste Magazine.

5. Which bands are the air beneath PARTYBABY's wings?

Some of the band's PARTYBABY like are Everclear, Primal Scream, Sparklehorse, Fat Boy Slim and SWMRS. 

6. Why should I give this fresh new shit a whip past the ears? 

For the tsunami of guitar PARTYBABY produce after the slow buildup. A fresh mix of old ideas with hot production. These are the heirs to the throne of alternative American rock'n'roll; I shit you not.

7. Do PARTYBABY have any more bangers? 

Fuck yes. Your Old Man is a fresh, savage, garage/glam rock attack on the senses that packs more wallop than a steel-capped boot to the taint. Overload is the album reprise, two minutes of a drunk man croaking along, playing his acoustic at 5 a.m. that explodes into a raging torrent of theatrical glam rock. 

8. Any more words numpty?

Noah Gersh was a guitarist with Portugal. The Man and Jamie Shefman is a producer and engineer, most notably on the last two 30 Seconds To Mars albums. 

“I see you, sweet Felicity,

The way you move is killing me” 

Ex Cops are an indie pop band from Brooklyn, New York. They have recorded two albums. Ex Cops sound a lot like classic English indie bands like James, Travis or Teenage Fanclub. They are influenced by Kiwi indie too so there is a bit of The Chills there too. Ex Cops debut album True Hallucinations (2013) contained the gem James. Not to be confused with the band James that it sounds a lot like. Pitchfork called James, “an exercise in indie-pop classicism” and it is James that is the quintessence of English indie.

“Thinking about what it all has to do”

Fuck Yeah! - C'mon

1.    Who are they? 

Fuck Yeah! are an indie glam rock band from Munich, Germany. C'mon (June'16) is a stand-alone single.

2. What have they got on offer?

C'mon is a lazy little Sunday afternoon groover with a fat riff that pokes it's head up sporadically. A little indie, a little glam, all good.

3. Who do Fuck Yeah! sound like?

T. Rex, Blur, The Fall.

4. What have the press said about C'mon? 

“Somewhere between post-punk and glam” – Life On Stage.

“The repetitive shout C’mon is already pure. The guitars do the rest” – Ultra Top.

“Goes quite well in the ear” – Hirnverbrandt. 

5. Which bands give Fuck Yeah! a boner?

Fuck Yeah!'s main influences are The Velvet Underground, Afghan Whigs, The Pixies, The Replacements and The Ramones. 


6. Why should I give C'mon a whip past the ears?

For the chubby riff.


7. Do Fuck Yeah! have any more good 'uns?

Give Rock'N'Roll Was Here To Stay a spin.


8. Any more words?

Not a dilly.

“I can’t wait,

Another minute”

Kaleo are a blues rock band from Mosfellsbaer, Iceland. Rocking hard since 2012 they have two long players on their roll of honor. Kaleo have been compared to Cage The Elephant, White Stripes, KONGOS, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and The Black Keys. Way Down We Go from the album A/B (2016) made it top ten in the U.S and Canadian alternative rock charts. But the best song is No Good (2015) off the same album. A swampy, bluesy, romper that The Music Enthusiast said is “pure, unadulterated, rock’n’roll.”

“Can’t fight the temptation,

When you get the vibration”

The Lulu Raes - Change My Tune

1.    Who are these heroes? 

Gaze on the majesty of The Lulu Raes, an indie pop rock band from Sydney, Australia. Change My Tune is a release from their debut E.P. All Our Parents Are Divorced (Aug'16). 

2. What kind of gas are they burning? 

Change My Tune is a busy little tune that bustles along bursting with energy. With a surf lick and a sunny vibe, and chaneling some Strokes garage slash 60's pop vibe, the tune will get you hot stepping. 

3. Who do The Lulu Raes sound like? 

The Strokes, Animal House and Foster The People.

4. What have the pillocks in the press said about Change My Tune?

“Shifts the band’s bubbly pop-nerd energy to the garage” – Rolling Stone Australia.

“Fucking unique and incomparable” – Wickedd Childd.

“Indie head banger” – AAA Backstage.

5. Whcih bands have influenced The Lulu Raes? 

Some of the main influences are The Strokes, The Pixies, Oasis, The Beatles and Macy Gray.

6. Why should I give Change My Tune a lash?

Change My Tune throws you off your guard, zigging when you think it will zag. That and the 60's surf pop sensibility married to new century garage makes for a trippy little tune with a bit of fire up it's arse.

7. Do The Lulu Raes have any more bangers?

Burnout is another interesting effort.

8. Any more words dude?

Not a dilly. 

“Damned if I do and damned if I don’t”

Two Gallants are an punk and blues-infused folk rock duo from San Francisco, California. They started on their musical odyssey in 2002 and have five long players on their battle honors. Two Gallants are influenced by the blues and bands like Nirvana, Pavement and Operation Ivy. The second album What The Toll Tells (2006) has the bands best two singles on it, Steady Rollin' and Las Cruces Jail. Las Cruces Jail is a romping tune Pitchfork called “a yowling cow-punk stomper.”

“I shot one man on the county line,

Took his dime and I blew his mind”