Some recent record reviews of some new PBP records. Taken from the Suburban Voice online zine
BUNNY SKULLS-18 Song EP (Punks Before
Profits, 7" EP)....
Formerly a duo, now a trio and I neglected
to review their first 7". Distored, raw hardcore in short, sharp
installments. I mean, you're not going to find any three minute epics here.
It's not all blinding thrash either. "Daily War" actually has
something of a melody. Pretty tongue-in-cheek and particularly contemptuous of
crusties, suicide punx, youth crew-ers and people who wear Hooters shirts.
What's funny is this sounds like it was recorded on a boombox or four-track but
it was actually recorded by Steve Albini at his studio. And he does a great job
of making it sound like a boombox recording. I just went back and
listened to their first, one-sided EP and that was recorded on a
four-track and is sonically similar. Maybe you can still score one. Go to www.myspace.com/bunnyskullsband.
(PO Box 1148, Grand Rapids, MI 49501, www.punksbeforeprofits.org)....
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RAMMING SPEED-Always Disgusted, Never
Surprised (Punks Before Profits, 7" EP)....
Boston's metallic hellions Ramming Speed
are back with four new tracks. The main muse is straight-up thrash metal with
some blowtorch leads. That's particularly true for "Too Close To
Almost," the best song here and almost close to catchy (sorry). Given to
blasting on occasional and Jonah Livingston has the sticksmanship to pull it
off but they're at their best when sticking to the traditional trappings. The
lyrics deal with economic collapse and putting too much faith in political
leaders i.e. the current occupant of the White House to make things better for
the underclass ("No Hope"). Pretty good but you really need to see
them in their live, hair-flying fury. (PO Box 1148, Grand Rapids, MI 49501, www.punksbeforeprofits.org)....
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RELIGIOUS SS DISORDER-Prey (Punks Before
Profit, 7" EP)....
Dark and churning punk with tribal-like
rhythms, buzzing guitar and bass, plus vocals with a whole lotta reverb on
them. The title track begins with collage of clips repeating the word
"terrorism" ad infinitum leading into the musical fray. The
more aggressive punk side comes up for "Critically Think" and
"People Not Property," but there are other times where there's an
anarcho punk vibe and that adds a distinctive flair. One of the better recent
releases from this label and well-packaged with a hand screened cover and
poster. (PO Box 1148, Grand Rapids, MI 49501, www.punksbeforeprofits.org)....
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