Shake Appeal is a column that highlights new garage and garage-adjacent releases. This week, Evan Minsker discusses the stacked new singles compilation from Suicide Squeeze, plus new stuff from Chicago's Flesh Panthers, DC's Foul Swoops, Fa Bonx, London's Thee MVP's, and more.
Various Artists: Forever Singles [Suicide Squeeze]
Though most of the artists on Forever Singles have released strong (and in some cases, classic) albums, some of their best individual songs have been released as singles on Suicide Squeeze. "Electric Chair" is one of the best Bleached songs recorded, Nobunny's "La La La La Love You" arguably stands as one of the greatest modern love songs, and King Tuff's "Wild Desire" is a worthy counterpart to Was Dead and King Tuff. Then factor in some absolutely killer tracks by Dirty Beaches, Nü Sensae, Davila 666, the Coathangers, JEFF the Brotherhood, Wax Idols, La Luz, and more. If you missed out on any of these singles the first time around, this compilation is rock'n'roll record collector gold.
Flesh Panthers: Flesh Panthers [Dumpster Tapes]
Chicago's Flesh Panthers open their tape with a snarling spoken vocal: "I wanna I wanna I wanna..." For a moment, it smacks of the offhand dirtbag-chic that was perfected by Johnny Thunders on L.A.M.F., and then they do these mid-song spoken word parts that recall Handsome Dick Manitoba on Go Girl Crazy. And while they're bringing to mind history's sleaziest punks, they manage to deliver songs with a punch and tons of attitude: "I'm fuckin' stoned," they spit on "I Lost My Mind" before ending the tape with a cover of Black Flag's Keith Morris-era classic "Nervous Breakdown".
Foul Swoops: sgc002 [shammgod]
It's not a new release—Foul Swoops put this tape out last year—but I'm writing about it here for two reasons: 1) It's an extremely strong collection of kinetic, exciting rock'n'roll music from this Washington, DC band, and 2) They only recently put it up on Bandcamp. When you've got songs with the coarse vocals of "Burn One for Bobby Keys" and the ragged momentum of "Good Looks" or "Shot in the Dark", release dates mean nothing. This is a consistently exciting tape, so if you haven't heard it yet, now's a good time to get caught up. (Full disclosure: Pitchfork contributor Aaron Leitko recorded the song "Wasted".)
Fa Bonx: "Jilto Boy" b/w "Rinda" [What's Your Rupture?]
Not much is known about Fa Bonx, but their song "Rinda" is an immediately gratifying burner. There's a chugging guitar intro and deep horns buzzing beneath the entire track. It's got the bellowing urgency of K-Holes' Dismania, but this one's not dark—just wide-eyed, candy coated rock'n'roll. And in keeping with their enigmatic presentation, they've got cover art by Bjorn Copeland (Black Dice) and a music video that's pretty much a direct rip off of a video featuring Adriano Celentano's "Prisencolinensinainciusol".
Thee MVP's: Thee MVP's [PNKSLM]
Fact: There are long stretches of the new Thee MVP's song "Funeral" that sound a ton like Ty Segall's "Oh Mary", though there's certainly more than enough to differentiate the two. That's how these London dudes open their new EP, which should go a long way to indicate the chutzpuh and fury on display here. But perhaps their most impressive trait comes forward when they lock into a lengthier groove while still bashing out a fast-and-loud rock'n'roll song with guitar solos and impressive percussion work. "US Airways" is a primary example of this, though they stretch out even more on "Sauna Song / January". During that song, they come out of a ferocious, breakneck melody to establish something slower and more paced, and therein, find the space to send off the EP with a huge guitar solo. They're rock'n'roll craftsmen, not Segall clones.
Also Worth Hearing: The new EP from French psych outfit Dusty Mush (via Howlin' Banana), the new 7" from Bloomington's surf trio Thee Tsunamis (via Magnetic South).