Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Medictation - Warm Places LP - Orange Vinyl (/100)

Untitled

Dead Broke (2016)

2016 has kind of been a shit year, taking away so many artists I respect.  And as bad as it has been, when Dickie Hammond passed away in 2015, I felt a profound loss.  This was a man whose music has had such an impact on me directly and had also influenced so many bands that I love.  It was a sad, sad day for punk rock.  Warm Places is the last record that Dickie was part of.

Also featuring member of The Sainte Catherines, Medictation is a roaring tribute to Dickie that is simply spectacular.  Dickie Hammond's guitar work is so distinct.  Whether you go through HDQ or Leatherface or Doctor Bison, you can always hear the way Dickie's guitar influences those band.  It's so powerful, but beautiful at the same time.  Medictation, for the most part, tends to stay closer to the Leatherface playbook.  Though, definitely more in line with the quieter moments of albums like The Last and Minx.

The vocals are appropriately raspy and wonderful.  Aside from an odd turn on "Stalingrad," where the super low, spoken word type vocals actually remind me a little of some of those goofy old Dandy Warhols songs.  Not that this song is a goof, but it stands in contrast so sharply with the rest of the album.  Still, this record is great.  It's a definite highlight in 2016 and we sure could use some of those.

Medictation - Warm Places:

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