Discomfort Creature - S/T LP - Orange Vinyl

Snappy Little Numbers  Bearded Punk / Monster Zero (2022)

Discomfort Creature is a new project spearheaded by Chris Fogel, who was a part of the early 2000s band The Gamits.  Having spent time on the Vinyl Collective message board during this time period, they came up a lot due to their affiliation with Suburban Home records.  I own exactly one Gamits record, their split 7" with The Murderburgers that was part of an All In Vinyl subscription series.  But I have no memory of it whatsoever.

Because of that, I was pretty much coming into Discomfort Creature with a limited set of expectations or preconceived notions.  I'm not really expecting it to sound like anything specific and there's nothing for them to live up to because of my unfamiliarity with prior works.  The good news is, that it's a pretty fun record.  The band that I really keep hearing echos of for some reason is Armchair Martian.  I'm not exactly sure why as vocally, Chris has more of a Billy Joe style than a Jon Snodgrass one, but there's an air about the songs that puts me in a similar place as I was when I heard Armchair Martian for the first time, even though Discomfort Creature plays things a little faster for the most part.

There isn't a bad song in the bunch with the bulk of the proceedings being fast paced affairs with just the slightest bit of twang creeping into their predominantly pop punk stylings.  This came in a little late to be in the running for my best of 2022 list, but I definitely would have had to make a place for them if I had a bit more time to spend with this record.

Discomfort Creature - S/T:
https://snappylittlenumbers.bandcamp.com/album/s-t-sln-233

Invasion Of Astro-Monster LP - From Godzilla: The Showa Era Soundtracks, 1954-1975 Box Set

Waxwork (2021) 

For the next several Fridays I'll be writing about an LP from the fantastic Godzilla Show Era soundtrack box set. Godzilla was such an important part of my childhood and the music was such a vital piece of that puzzle. Thrilled to finally have these on vinyl.

Me, I'll probably always call this movie Monster Zero even if that's not it's proper Japanese name.  Monster Zero was one of the earlier Gidzilla VHS tapes I had in my collection as a kid so I have watched it a ton over the years.  It's definitely one of the ones I'm most familiar with, though admittedly I've probably watched the dubbed version twenty times more than the subtitled Japanese one.  

It's mostly built around Godzilla and Rodan against King Ghidorah who is now controlled by spacemen from Planet X.  In particular I love the alien invader plot, which quickly became a staple in Godzilla movies, and I think the Planet X denizens are probably the coolest batch of marauding space people. 

Soundtrack wise, it's another Ifukube masterpiece.  The main title and battle scene scores are impeccable, not only calling on some past themes, but really bringing in new, atmospheric pieces that really set the stage.  I don't know that it's my favorite score, but it's definitely way up there.  As per the rest of this set, Waxwork did great with this LP.  Sounds great, looks great and is happily part of my collection.

Invasion Of Astro-Monster: "Main Title Theme":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smnWKHVNw-g&ab_

Saturday Night Karaoke - Millennial Kicks 7" - Pink Vinyl

Waterslide / SP / Bloated Kat / Monster Zero / Quickening (2021)

Saturday Night Karaoke are a band that has been cranking out a good amount of releases over the past few years, this 7" is their most recent and was released on quite a few labels from around the world.  So chances are if you are reading this, there's probably a label close by that you could pick this up from if you wanted it.

I've written about Saturday Night Karaoke before and I kind of stand by my prior statements that they really feel like a Mutant Pop band to me.  They've got that Ramonesy sing-song version of pop punk going on, but I do really like this particular 7" more than a lot of other bands that go down this path.  I hear elements of bands like Walker and there's definitely a kinship with The Hum Hums that I can't not hear.  

It's very easy for this style of pop punk to end up sounding kind of generic and just fade into the background, but Saturday Night Karaoke manage to avoid those traps.  They write genuinely great pop songs with great hooks, killer backing vocals and sweet, sweet melodies. 

Saturday Night Karaoke - Millennial Kicks 7":
https://saturdaynightkaraoke.bandcamp.com/album/millennial-kicks

The Hum Hums - Battle Line 7"

Waterslide/Eccentic Pop/Monster Zero/One Chord Wonder (2018)

I really love The Hum Hums.  They are one of my current favorite bands and the fact that I got to see them play while I was in Tokyo will always be something that's very special to me.  Battle Line is a four song 7" that highlights everything that I love about this band.

"Baby Mine (No One But You)" starts things off with an uptempo chord progression and a hooky chorus with the band's trademark backing vocal harmonies that give any band a run for their money.  "The Girl From Romania" slows this down just a bit, and has a feel to it that reminds me of mid 90s era The Mr. T Experience.

First up on the B side is the title track "Battle Line."  This one is a punchy blast of crunchy guitar and is a pretty straightforward pop punk song.  The final song, "I Can't Take It," is my personal favorite of the bunch, once again because of the absolutely tremendous vocal harmonies.  I've definitely caught myself singing along to the chorus on this one.

The Hum Hums are great.  I've yet to hear a song by them that I didn't love and I'm glad they keep putting out more records.  Hopefully they'll have another full length coming soon.

The Hum Hums - Battle Line 7":
https://watersliderecords.bandcamp.com/album/battle-line

Heavy Heart - Distance LP - Clear w/ Black Splatter (/500)

 

Brassneck / Can I Say / Don't Trust The Hype / Guerilla Asso / Inhumano / Monster Zero (2017)

Heavy Heart hails from France and they are a band that I wasn't familiar with before I started seeing them mentioned by Brassneck records.  As Brassneck is one of those labels that I trust, I picked this album, up along with a couple of other things in a recent order.  I was starting to feel like 2017 was turning into a lackluster year for new music, but Heavy Heart has given this year the kick in the pants it has so desperately needed.

The band that instantly comes to mind as a comparative touchstone for Heavy Heart is Banner Pilot.  I hear similar vocal inflections with just the right amount of sandpaper delivery coupled with a tight powerful guitar attack.  I would say that Heavy Heart leans more melodic than Banner Pilot, but that's a lean that just makes me like the band even more.

You have your sing along group vocals, slick transitions into palm mutes and raucous choruses.  It's just a fun, engaging listen start to finish.  Even though it was released by six labels, I don't think any of them were in the US, so you may have to dig around through some reputable distros or grab one from overseas.

Heavy Heart - Distance:
https://brassneckrecords.bandcamp.com/album/heavy-heart-distance