Shake Appeal is a column that highlights new garage and garage-adjacent releases. Evan Minsker skipped a week, which means there's a huge backlog of awesome rock'n'roll records for this week's edition. Some have argued it's too many records and maybe he should cool it and pare back to five like he normally does. But fuck that: Enjoy this giant-size double-wide edition of Shake Appeal.
Mordecai: Neil's Generator [Richie/TestosterTunes]
What's the noise coming out of Butte, Montana? It's Mordecai, a band that, according to legend, made one of their early records in a YMCA bathroom. Their new platter via Philadelphia's Richie/TestosterTunes is an impressive guitar record. They explore a variety of textures under the banner of muted production. They jangle under their deadpan vocals on "The Bird", they warble uneasily on "Morning Dew", and on "Cold Rain and Snow", they establish an expansive Steppenwolf-esque ramble. But just describing what they do song by song really undersells this record, whose narratives and performances are an appropriate pairing for the chaotic graffiti on the album's cover: Fascinating if you look at the big picture, rewarding if you hone in on individual elements. Neil's Generator is an enigmatic and required listen.
Yi: Crying [self-released]
Oakland's Yi have unveiled their first long-player, and if you want to find the exact reason why you should be paying attention, skip over to track two, "Going Dumb". Though the vocals are largely unintelligible, it's actually a really sophisticated rock song. They employ satisfying two-part harmony vocals, a droning low end, an elated "la la la" section, and then they strip everything else away for a guitar solo that demands attention. The effect is so powerful because that moment feels tenuous on a record that's loud, fast, and fuzzy. Sure enough, they're back into a full-power assault by the next track.
The Achtungs: "Full of Hate" [Total Punk]
The world is much better off because of Total Punk Records, who continue to deliver searing punk rock gems from all over the globe. After delivering killer records from St. Louis' Lumpy & the Dumpers and Sweden's Bäddat För Trubbel, now they're offering a 7" from Finland's the Achtungs. The A-side to their new platter, "Full of Hate", rips, and for a track that's about being filled with unbridled rage, it's got a joyful melody beneath its goblin-like vocals. They've got a new LP coming out later this year, which rules, because I definitely want to hear more from this band.
Hobocop: Half Man Half Cop [Slovenly]
Out of Oakland comes Hobocop, a band featuring King Lollipop himself, the Shannon and the Clams co-head Cody Blanchard. But this band is so far removed from those two projects. What we're dealing with here is a simmering, homemade minimalism—a rock'n'roll record that isn't afraid to get quiet before it goes loud and fast. It also isn't nearly as skate punk trashy as the band name might suggest. They've got an impressive knack for riding out grooves, and one where shorter accent pieces like the soulful 46-second instrumental "California Biodome" punch up the album without overstuffing it. It's a striking album that seems to owe as much to old jazz and soul records as it does to rock'n'roll.
Southern Comfort: "Suzanne" [HoZac]
Oh man, another new project from Angie Garrick? That's right, the Sydney native who's released music recently as Angie and with Ruined Fortune just does not slow down. (She's also got a Straight Arrows LP out next month, if you can believe it.) Southern Comfort is Angie and Harriet Hudson, and their HoZac 7" "Suzanne" is a well done shot of beach pop that's cut with just a hair of that Ruined Fortune sludge. It's ragged and paced, and the guitar solo that turns up doesn't increase the speed or volume in any substantial way. It goes at its own pace, and hopefully, Angie decides to churn out more material with this band at some point.
No Bails: Epyx Shredder [Pelican Pow Wow]
Attention fans of the Spits and all skate punk in general: You should listen to the debut LP from Kalamazoo, Michigan's No Bails. (Fact: It's the first long-player released by the consistently great label Pelican Pow Wow.) Is it "power chords and simplistic vocals" formulaic to the point where it sounds like a lot of skate punk that's come before it? Yes. Are a bunch of the lyrics super dumb? Oh, absolutely. ("Punch you right in the dick/ Fuckin' deal with it!") But that's exactly the lane this record occupies: It's aggressively simple; the soundtrack to watching skaters bail a bunch of times.
No Bails: "These Fucking Roads" on SoundCloud.
Sick Thoughts / Waylon Thornton and the Heavy Hands / WAND / Inutili / Useless Eaters / Birds of Paradise: Singles [Goodbye Boozy]
Earlier this year, Goodbye Boozy Records put out a bunch of extremely solid rock'n'roll singles from bands all over the globe. (We highlighted the Ausmuteants 7".) They're doing it again with a pile of 45s that rule for vastly different reasons. There's the new one from Sick Thoughts. (With his My Life Is a Mess EP, Drew Owen is having a prolific week in an already-prolific year.) There's a split (co-released with Aagoo) featuring some Ty Segall-recorded material from WAND and Inutili. There's a new one from Useless Eaters, a stomper from W T H H, and a haunting folk tune from a new band called Birds of Paradise. And it's all good.
Slushy: Pastime Gardens [Grabbing Clouds]
At the very end of the second-ever Shake Appeal, a Randy Records 7" from the Chicago band Slushy made an appearance. The streaming B-side from that record was a catchy bubblegum tune that could've come from Oakland garage pop heads like Hunx or Peach Kelli Pop. With their sunny pop LP Pastime Gardens, they've expanded on that song's promise tenfold. What they've got here is an album with 14 tracks of beach party music. The lyrics are childlike, the melodies are sweet. "She's Going Away Now" has them swooning-yet-forlorn like Joey Ramone. The concepts and songs aren't at all complex, but that's where the utility lies here: Music for dancing and vibing and falling in love.
Doozies / Flower Girl: Live in the Basement [Aloe Music]
The Doozies are from Washington, DC. Flower Girl are from Brooklyn. The two bands have been friends since childhood, and later this summer, they each take a side of the split LP Live in the Basement. From the sounds of things, it's an appropriate, like-minded pairing. Each band is offering pop songs with breezy melodies, but a delivery that packs power and oomph. And if you need incentive to get a physical copy, the sleeves were apparently screen printed and stamped-by-hand in a basement somewhere. Appropriate, considering the LP title.
The Hussy / Digital Leather: Split 12" [Southpaw]
Starting things off is Digital Leather, the formidable project by multi-instrumentalist Shawn Foree. On the other, it's Madison darlings the Hussy. And hey, why not, Foree also plays on some of the Hussy's side. While Foree smolders with his space-aged new wave tracks (which are a must-have if you're a fan of that Damaged Bug LP or, duh, any previous Digital Leather work), the Hussy's power pop attack is given an added layer of synth-based spaciness. This is what a split should be: Two sides that are inherently different while wholly complementing each other.
Also Worth Hearing: No Backskies from Gymshorts; a new single from Feral Jenny