Fungi Girls/ Indian Wars – Split 7″

Hey there, how are we today? I hope all is well. If not, hopefully that will change after you check out what I’ve got lined up for you guys today. It’s the brand new split 7″ between your favorite scuzzy lo-fi act outta Texas called FUNGI GIRLS, and then another band called INDIAN WARS who hail straight outta Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. We’ve covered a good bit of the Fungi Girls discography here at the Drone, but this is the first time we’re talking about Indian Wars. This looks to be the second 7″ from these rowdy Canadian rockers, and I’m sure it won’t be their last. They also appear to be friends with another Drone favorite, the Dead Ghosts, considering that both acts hail from Vancouver. At first glance you may wonder why these two bands are splitting a 7″ together, but those questions are put to rest immediately after the first listen.

So. We start off on the A-side (duh), which is a gritty new track from the Fungi Girls called “Sun Blues”. Bouncy, elastic bass lines and a headache-inducing guitar scratch dominate this song from beginning to end, complete with that all-too-familiar Fungi Girls howl that you (and I myself) have become extremely fond of. They even managed to work a surfy sounding transition into the song, which definitely causes you to double-listen. Kind of like a double-take when you turn yr head, but this time you’re turning to your music player to rewind the song a bit to hear that awesome shit again. DOUBLE-LISTEN!!! Then after a quick face-melting guitar in the last minute (otherwise known as an authentic Fungi Girls psychedelic freak-out), it’s time to flip that shit over to the B-side for some Indian Wars action.

This is the first I’ve ever heard of these bros, but it won’t stay that way for long after hearing this song. Oh no! The first 30 seconds kind of start off on a different level, which I guess acts as an intro for the song. Then a galloping drum beat takes control of everything and there’s no turning back. After this the song has a mixed feel between a rowdy county-punk song and a bluesy guitar shuffle – it’s almost impossible to pick just one, because they both work so well. The lead singer (name unknown? is it Brad Felotick?) sounds like he’s got some mighty burdens to unload before this song comes to an end. Wait for the final 40 seconds and you’ll be in the middle of a nasty, twangy guitar solo that sums up the raw energy of this song quite perfectly. There’s almost a Black Lips feel to this song now that I’m thinking about it.

This 7″ absolutely rips, and I highly suggest you go buy it from Rough Trade, because I think that just might be THEE last place to get it. I’m probably wrong though – get in touch with the dudes at Psychic Lunch or CMRTYZ to find out for yourself. Either way you decide to go, it’s limited to 300 and pressed on some nice white vinyl, so you’re going to be happy no matter what. Just get it before that other scumbag does! Hurry!

Sun Blues –

Pick You Up –

My Rating: 9/10
Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Garage Rock, Psychedelic, Punk
Split 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Fungi Girls – Sun Blues
2.) Indian Wars – Pick You Up

Fungi Girls on Myspace
Indian Wars on Myspace
The 7″ is still available from Rough Trade! Get it quick because this thing is SOLD OUT everywhere else!
Fungi Girls – Turquoise Hotel 7″ previously posted on the Drone
Fungi Girls – Seafaring Pyramids previously posted on the Drone

Univox – Lying Fuck 7″

I’m loving all of these new Philly bands that have been popping up lately. Most recently coming into my radar would be Philadelphia’s own UNIVOX, and these guys definitely fit in quite nicely with the ever-growing band scene in Philadelphia. They certainly don’t waste any time, and they’re certainly not afraid to rock yr face off and send yr ass right to the damn floor. They quickly prove that statement with the song “Pi” as well. Right off the bat these guys already sound like they’re going ape-shit on their instruments, and then we have the singer shoving his words down our throat almost immediately. I don’t exactly know who is singing in “Pi”, but I have come to understand that all four of the dudes in the band take vocal duties, so I guess it wouldn’t really make a difference. Right after the electrified rock out that is “Pi”, they start up from a different level with the song “I’m a Lying Fuck”. A nasally acoustic guitar starts things off, and you’ll probably notice that it’s definitely a different guy singing. Or maybe not. But it definitely sounds that way.

It doesn’t stay that way for long though. Things change up right before the one minute mark when the singer counts off, and then the shit hits the fan. You may also notice the vocal harmonies, and there’s a shit-ton of them. They definitely use this feat to their advantage, too. I guess that’s the perks of having multiple singers in yr band. Stick around til the final minute of the song for some awesome guitar work as well. Next up would be “Cannonball”, the longest song included on the 7″. The singer sings deeply about being a carpet, a cow, a pyramid, and probably even a few other things that I missed. Then at the two minute mark things take a drastic turn. From here on out, a galloping drum beat and a small sprinkle of a country-music tinge take over the song, and you’re probably lying if you say you saw this part coming. That’s all I got for you today, but check out the songs below. If you’re from Philadelphia, you’ll feel pretty psyched after listening knowing that you come from the same city as the music.

Pi –

Cannonball –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Punk, Alternative, Garage Rock
Lying Fuck 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Pi
2.) I’m a Lying Fuck
3.) Cannonball

BUY the 7″ from Insound!
BUY their full-length while yr at it too. Why not??
Univox on Myspace !

The Boom Bang – Bummer Camp 7″

Yo yo. Got something real nice for you guys here today. Not sure if you remember what I said from a few days ago about having stuff lined up already for everyday this week, but I’ve already gotten a bit off task from my original plans. You could thank THE BOOM BANG for this, because they sent me an e-mail with some information about their forthcoming 7″ EP from Guestroom Records out of Norman, Oklahoma, and I’m glad they got in touch. The release date for this brand new 7″ of theirs would be September 17th (also my birthday), but the band was nice enough to hook you guys up with a download of the 7″. Not sure how long it will be available, so you should probably snag it now while you can.

First things first: There guys play LOUD. I can only imagine what one of their shows might have in store. That being said – let’s hope these guys make it out to Philadelphia sooner or later. I’m sure it would be a ballin’ time. This way we could witness the madness that is The Boom Bang right before our eyes, but moving on. These guys play absolutely head splitting, heavy guitar driven garage-punk songs with an extremely staggering guitar sound. The gritty guitars may actually make you cringe – kind of like when somebody scratches their nails against a chalk board – but not in a bad way. The cringe would be out of sheer happiness and love for this band and their lethal sound. And call me crazy, but parts of James Smiths vocals in the song “Swamp City” actually remind me of Glenn Mercer from the Feelies. But you guys should definitely check out these songs below, because I think yr gonna like these guys. Don’t forget you can download this stuff too. You should check this out too – they’ve got a music video for the song “Tokyo Roll”.

Tokyo Roll –

Swamp City –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Garage Rock, Lo-Fi, Punk
Bummer Camp 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Tokyo Roll
2.) We Skeletons
3.) Run Way Away
4.) Swamp City

You download the 7″ completely for FREE right here – now say thanks to the band!
The Boom Bang on Myspace
The Boom Bang on Facebook

No Age – Glitter 12″

So as most of you may already know, noise-rocking heavyweights NO AGE are in the process of putting the finishing touches on their next full-length album (which is due to be released on September 28th by none other than Sub Pop records). To get everyone ready for the LP, Sub Pop did us the favor of putting out two brand new releases by No Age (one is a 7″ – the other is a 12″), each featuring the album song “Glitter”, and then each containing their own unique non-album B-sides. The 12″ has the B-sides “In Rebound” and “Vision II”, while the 7″ includes one B-side called “Inflorescence”. Pretty cool, right?

By now, I’m sure you already know the deal here. No Age is a duo consisting of Dean Spunt and Randy Randall, and they tend to play these noisy, rambunctious, punk rock songs – sometimes with a bit of added ambiance or possibly with a pinch of infectious pop (and usually played best at loud volumes). You could honestly use any single one of those words to describe the music from the new 12″, because they really do cover every last sound mentioned – they just do it all with that familiar No Age sound. Which would most likely mean lots of unintelligible noises and clamorous textures.

“In Rebound” sort of falls a bit more towards the poppy side of things with the shredded guitars, while “Glitter” takes on a much more noisy, metallic sound dominated by wrenching guitar sounds that may or may not give the listener a slight headache if they listened for too long. Then last but not least we’ve got “Vision II”, which would more or less fall into the ambient side of things. Singer/ drummer Dean Spunt’s vocals get lost in the murky, intoxicating textures, and before long you hear some effects that actually reminded me of bubble wrap being popped relentlessly, or a bunch of fireworks going off nearby. I’ll let you decide. Check out the songs below.

PS – You can download the song “Glitter”, courtesy of Sub Pop (just right click, and hit ‘save link as’)

Glitter –

In Rebound –

Vision II –

My Rating: 7.5/10
Genre/ Tags: Noise Rock, Experimental, Punk, Ambient
Glitter 12″: Tracklist:
1.) Glitter
2.) In Rebound
3.) Vision II

BUY the 12″ directly from Insound
No Age on Myspace
No Age on Blogspot
More info. on their upcoming LP right here @ Sub Pop

DOOMSTAR! – Rainbow Bloodsucker EP

Yo dudes. I’m SUPER stoked on this band we have here today. I hope most of you are unaware of these guys, because when you give it your first listen, chances are your ass will be sent straight to the floor. If only I could see your reactions upon first hearing. Too bad that’s not going to happen. All I know is that I was totally into this stuff right from the start. My first intentions were to buy absolutely everything they had for sale, which only turns out to be a brand new cassette tape single, but that’s enough, right???. If these guys keep doing what they’re doing, I’m sure they’ll have PLENTY of more releases for us somewhere down the road. Of course, I am speaking of Cambridge, Massachusetts own DOOMSTAR! (capitalization and exclamation necessary).

It would seem as though DOOMSTAR! has been hard at work for the year of 2010. Their EP that we have here today came out just this past February, and they just put out this cassette tape in July. So with this EP, you’ll probably figure out pretty quickly that this band is far from shy. They don’t beat around the bush or anything like that. Nothing too pretty or too fancy, no glam, no chillwave – just straight up IN YR FACE gritty guitar-driven psych-rock jam outs with a bit of the moody, punk flare mixed in for good measure. But they’re not always pummeling you full-throttle – parts of the song “Sharon Mitchel” get a bit quieter than the rest, but certainly not for too long before they’re back to destroy you some more. Other songs like “Gimmee Some” and “Handsome Man” tend to lean a little more to the pop side of things, but they still don’t forget to bring along that staggering guitar sound for the ride. Then there’s songs like “Rainbow Bloodsucker” and “You Can Hide”, which serve no other purpose than to make your jaw drop straight to the floor. For a good portion of the song (Rainbow Bloodsucker), the same two guitar chords go through a hell of a beat down, getting absolutely crushed by epic guitar solos and relentless, crashing drums. This was the first song I heard from the EP, and it was a HELL of a way to be introduced to this band.

Do you understand why I’m so stoked on these guys now? Hopefully you do. If not, listen to these songs below to help add a little excitement to your day. Let’s help spread the DOOMSTAR! name, because these guys deserve to be heard.

Handsome Man –

Rainbow Bloodsucker –

You Can Hide –

My Rating: 8.5/10
Genre/ Tags: Garage Rock, Psychedelic, Punk
Rainbow Bloodsucker EP: Tracklist:
1.) Handsome Man
2.) Kitty Kitty
3.) Lily Face
4.) Rainbow Bloodsucker
5.) Sharon Mitchel
6.) Gimmee Some
7.) Ronald Ray-Gun
8.) You Can Hide

BUY DOOMSTAR! releases directly from their Bandcamp page
DOOMSTAR! on Myspace
DOOMSTAR! on Muxtape

Useless Eaters – Hear/ See 7″

Useless Eaters is the moniker for 19-year-old Seth Sutton from Memphis, TN and he records these songs himself with a four-track cassette. This is his most recent release, coming from the Memphis label Shattered Records, which was originally put together and run by Jay Reatard back in 2004. Unfortunately Reatard is no longer with us, but his label continues to churn out some damn good tunes, as proved by this 7″ here. And wherever he is, I’m sure Jay would be smiling.

Three brand new Useless Eaters songs fill this fine new piece of wax, with each song getting its point across before the two minute mark. That being said, this thing rips through pretty quickly, but it rips pretty hard too. Noisy, spiny guitar-driven songs dominate as Sutton shouts in anger over the head spinning racket. You should check out these songs below, ripped directly from the 7″!

Hear/ See –

Just A Person –

Genre/ Tags: Punk, Lo-Fi
Hear/See 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Hear/See
2.) Smoke Alarm
3.) Just a Person

Useless Eaters on Myspace
Useless Eaters on Blogspot
BUY Useless Eaters records on Insound

The Band in Heaven/ Weird Wives – Split Tape

Remember the BAND in HEAVEN? I posted their awesome demo tunes back at the very end of May, and since then those guys must have been hard at work. They’re now back on the scene with a brand new cassette tape, which may or may not be their first official release, and the tape is split with another band you may have already come across somewhere in your internet travels: WEIRD WIVES. But just in case you’re not familiar, I’ll give you a quick fill in. Weird Wives is 3/5 of the band Surfer Blood, who believe it or not were actually already a band before Surfer Blood came together. I’ve come to understand that Weird Wives have a couple 7″ records out there, but I can’t seem to find any information on them. The best I found were these two EP downloads – EP#1 and EP#2.

So if you remember the Band in Heaven or if you’ve already heard Weird Wives, then you may already know what to expect from this brand new cassette tape. Gritty, abrasive, in-yr-face punk rock that’s going to knock your ass to the ground and keep you down there for as long as you’re willing to accept the musical harassment that’s on this tape. The first song up – “Summer Bummer” – comes from the Band in Heaven, and it does just that. Not only is it noisy, but they’ve even managed to work some eerie, space-like sounding keyboards in the mix as well, giving this song a little of the best from both worlds. Next would come “Suicide Pact”, and they take a small step back on the intensity this time around, but nothing too drastic. Before I knew the tracklist of this tape I was PRAYING their song “High Low” was on it…no worries though. Maybe next time? Flip the tape over for some more face pounding noise-punk action, only this time we’re in Weird Wives territory. Drony vocals and lazy-but-heavy guitars dominate the songs, possibly influenced by smoking a bit of weed and playing some music? You tell me, I dunno. Check out the two songs from the tape below and see what you think. Please leave some comments too! People don’t do that enough around here! If you want to hear the rest of the songs from the tape, follow this link here.

Summer Bummer –

Head Bugs –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Noise Rock, Lo-Fi, Shoegaze, Punk
Split Tape: Tracklist:
1.) The Band in Heaven – Summer Bummer
2.) The Band in Heaven – Suicide Pact
3.) Weird Wives – Head Bugs
4.) Weird Wives – Wet Blanket

Band in Heaven on Myspace
Band in Heaven previously posted on the Drone
Weird Wives on Myspace
More info. on the tape right here @ Bandcamp
Workerbee Records is releasing the tape, but I don’t see any info. on their site just yet

Unnatural Helpers – Sunshine/Pretty Girls 7″

UNNATURAL HELPERS are a four piece rock band hailing from Seattle, Washington. Dean Whitmore, Kimberly Morrison, Brian Standeford, and Charles Gebhardt make up the band, and together they play these quick, guitar-heavy tunes, almost always getting their point across before the three minute mark. This 7″ was their first release to come from the Hardly Art label, and it was released right at the end of March. A month later after the single came their full-length effort “Cracked Love & Other Drugs”, and since then I’m sure these guys have been touring relentlessly. Check out a song from both sides of the record right below, the self-depreciating lyrics of “Sunshine/Pretty Girls” or the heavy rockin’ in “Shakes”. Definitely some nice guitar work in there. Keep an eye out for their full-length too.

Sunshine/Pretty Girls –

Shakes –

My Rating: 7/10
Genre/ Tags: Punk, Alternative, Garage Rock
Sunshine/Pretty Girls 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Sunshine/Pretty Girls
2.) Did the Lawn Get Mowed?
3.) Shakes
4.) Waiting Such a Long Time

BUY the 7″ directly from Insound – Limited to 500!
You can also buy their full-length LP from Insound
Unnatural Helpers on Myspace
Unnatural Helpers on Last.fm

The Unwed Teenage Mothers – Blonde Girls

Hello, hello. I originally planned on having this LP posted a bit sooner, but then I stumbled across that Lord Huron stuff over the weekend and my plans totally got destroyed. You can probably figure out why too – I wanted to share that stuff as soon as possible. I’m still having a tough time listening to other music right now too because that single is like the Nazi of my portable music device.

If you’re stuck on Lord Huron like me still, well, I got some bad news for ya. The Unwed Teenage Mothers are certainly not far off on the addiction scale. The songs on this LP are short little pop-punk outbursts that I’m sure will crawl under your skin, therefore forcing you to play them over and over again before you’re finally satisfied. Which brings me to my next point – it was a superb move by the Play Pinball! Records dudes to press the same songs on both sides of this “Blonde Girls” LP. If you’re confused on what that means, read this album description. Basically this LP has the same nine songs on both sides of the record, hereby doubling the life of your brand new record! It’s definitely a unique way to go about it too. I don’t think I’ve ever seen/heard of this before. It’s almost like buying two of the exact same record.

They pressed 420 copies of the vinyl total, with 100 on ‘blonde’ vinyl, 300 on black, and 20 on blue (apparently you have to talk to the band to get a blue copy), but they definitely still have plenty of copies of the blonde edition available, and I suggest you get on that right away before it’s too late. No matter which route you choose, you’ll still be happy though, because these Unwed Mothers are just great. It’s good, honest pop-punk with a bit of the lo-fi scuzz mixed in, and chances are the frenzy is only just beginning with these guys. Get on it now while it’s still early. Said best by the Play Pinball! folk, “The Unwed Teenage Mothers are gonna knock you down and then knock you up,” so please check out these songs from the record below. Happiness shall ensue. Hopefully not pregnancy. Enjoy.

PS – They updated the layout of my WordPress theme. What do you guys think? Give me some feedback, leave a comment on the post!

Uh Oh –

Wait (I Don’t Wanna Be Alone) –

No One Wants To –

My Rating: 8.5/10
Genre/ Tags: Pop, Punk, Lo-Fi
Blonde Girls: Tracklist:
1.) Little Allie
2.) Change Your Mind
3.) Uh Oh
4.) Baby You’re Dying
5.) Do You Wanna Be My Girl
6.) I Am a Ghost
7.) Wait (I Don’t Wanna Be Alone)
8.) That’s My Man
9.) No One Wants To

The Unwed Teenage Mothers on Myspace
BUY the LP directly from Play Pinball! Records – Only 100 of the ‘blonde’ edition!

JEFF the Brotherhood – Mellow Out 7″

YO. I hate when this happens, man. I’m late to the game once again on another awesome band, and this time I really feel like I’ve been missing out. After listening to this 7″ all I could think about was what their full-length “Heavy Days” sounds like. And by now you’ve probably already figured out that today’s band is JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD. But if “Heavy Days” is anything like this 7″, then I’m gonna be alllllll over that stuff as soon as I get my hands on it.

So this 7″ was put out by Suicide Squeeze Records in a hand-numbered edition of 750, and if it’s anything like other JEFF releases, this thing is bound to sell out. The coolest part is that 250 of them were pressed on glow in the dark vinyl, just in case you’re ever in the mood to spin your records in the dark…but moving on.

This gem features two JEFF songs, one of them being brand new and the other coming from their LP “Heavy Days”. The new song is called “Mellow Out”, and it’s absolutely fantastic. Jake Orrall sings about keeping his records on a shelf because he cares about his health, but I can’t seem to find a connection between records on shelves and the well-being of a person. Either way this song is going to reel you in pretty quickly with it’s invigorating, electrified guitar psych-outs that pop up in the little breaks and the careful, frantic drumming of brother Jamin Orrall. The two complement each other almost perfectly in the music, playing together at the right speeds and switching things up at the proper moments. That brotherly chemistry is definitely noticeable in their sound, as these guys both know how to hit that mark. Check out “Mellow Out” right below – you’ll be glad you did.

Mellow Out –