It's the latest Shake Appeal, Evan Minsker's garage/punk/psychedelic/etc. music round-up. Here at the start of 2015, there's been a lot of quality trash rock. (Some of which was written about in the previous installment.) Let's look at what's been good.
Increasingly, when approaching a pile of music as nebulous as "garage rock" (which, let's face it, is a term that has no substantial meaning beyond "likeminded, usually wild-eyed weirdos making music that sounds similarly scuzzy"), it becomes easier to find the good stuff by checking in with established labels. It's wholly possible that a band like Platinum Boys could've flown under the radar, but thankfully, two of their crunchy, Southern rock-indebted tunes are included in the latest of Windian Records' consistently solid Subscription Series box sets. The box features six 7" singles, including ramshackle bashers by Church Bats and indelible power pop nuggets from John Wesley Coleman III.
The box also features a new platter from DD Owen, aka Drew Owen from Sick Thoughts. The project isn't much like his ST records—its churning, echoing aesthetic leans closer to Lost Sounds than Reatards. Owen's also a key example of why it's important to pay attention to records on start-up labels: If you just looked at his stuff on Slovenly or Goner, you're getting a very small percentage of his output. He's got another new project called Chicken Chain, and his first LP under that pseudonym, Birth of the Googus, is out this week on Snot Releases (a label run by Flesh Wounds). It's typically vicious fare from Owen—music that's utterly blown out. Here's the story: Snot Releases asked Owen if he had anything to release and he hit them back within 45 minutes with Googus. Given how unapologetically primitive this sounds, that story checks out.
West Coast wreckers CCR Headcleaner have a new record out called Cokesmoker, and like its namesake, it comes packed with two side-long cuts. Structure aside, it does not sound like a Sleep record—these jams are more like a sun-kissed version of early Purling Hiss. If you're looking for something similarly fried but without all those minutes, Total Punk Records have you covered with the new one from Vatican Dagger, the New Orleans outfit featuring Gary Wrong. Like the label's best stuff, the thing's full of muscle, intimidation, and raw sewage delivery. Dumpster Tapes and Bachelor Records are delivering the self-titled new one from Hamburg's Küken, which should not be slept on. This is well-written, tightly performed rock'n'roll at its most efficient. On each song, they establish a strong hook over two minutes, and then they're done. Line Traps out of British Columbia have also delivered their self-titled, one-sided LP. You know it's exciting because it's loaded with short, punchy tunes where they scream choruses like "SHE'S ELECTRIC" and "STATIC SHOCK".
Veering over to the pop-leaning end of the slop rock spectrum, it's definitely worth putting an ear to Lucern Raze, the band masterminded by PNKSLM boss Luke Reilly. The guitar tone on his new Burger/PNSKLM LP Stockholm 1 bring to mind the greats of the '60s—the surf bands and obscure garage rock outfits from compilations—while his vocals stay loose and slovenly, making the whole operation sound satisfyingly unsteady. Frankie and the Witch Fingers' sunny, well-done new self-titled album on Permanent recalls the ferocity and immediacy of the Back From the Grave bands. Sydney's Dead Farmers have earworms for days on their ragged new LP Wasteland, which is out now on R.I.P. Society. If you like your swooning pop muffled by fuzz, definitely check out the new Dickhead Rescue 7" on ever/never. There's also a new record from Vancouver's Twin River—check out the video for their Should the Light Go Out single "Bend to Break" below.
It definitely ain't garage rock a la his work with the Gories or Danny and the Darleans, but garage hero Danny Kroha has a folk blues album that's definitely worth your dime. Angels Watching Over Me features stomping spirituals and tall tales howled like a true Son House apostle. Appropriately, it's out now on Jack White's label, Third Man. This also seems like a good spot to talk about Western Where, the brand new country imprint from Detroit's Urinal Cake Records. They deal jukebox 45s featuring Michigan rock'n'roll who try their hand at folk and country. Sounds like a disaster, right? It's not, though! Listen to tracks from Autumn Nicole Wetli (of Rebel Kind) and Craig Brown (of Terrible Twos/Liquor Store). (These records are why there used to be a "garage-adjacent" disclaimer at the top of the column—same people, different sound.)
Five years after his death, some really excellent bands in Europe have come together to pay homage to Jay Reatard's Blood Visions. The bands involved in the tribute LP interpret the classic album in a variety of way. Bazooka keep the pace and bite of the title track, but change the language. "Greed, Money, Useless Children" is slowed down (and made to sound more like a Parquet Courts song) by Wolf Mountains. White Mystery rep America on the compilation, teaming with the Holy Motors for a cover of "My Shadow". Purists will undoubtedly balk at this, but it's clearly a labor of love; there are some powerful performances and intriguing points of view on display here.