Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing

Kurt Vile-Constant Hitmaker (Gulcher Records)  Kurt Vile (real name, apparently) has restored what little dignity there was to be had within the singer-songwriter genre. It is not as though he is cut from that cloth, exactly…heaven forbid! To be honest, his rock/psych eccentricities bear greater likeness to the gamut-running pop collages of Ariel Pink or the fx-laden weirdo warblings of John Maus. Still, such FM radio dial-influenced deconstructions, mutations, and ruminations exemplify neither the ’60s/70s/80s retro pop chic of the former artist nor the eclectic synth-based musings of the latter.

No, “Constant Hitmaker” provides an impressive and perplexing outsider homage to a rich tapestry of ’60s/’70s/80s Americana-lite, at certain intervals dripping with the sort of rugged small town, apple pie sheen that might satiate devotees of Melloncamp or even the boss, while at others submerged in a perplexing, vertigo-inducing swamp of blown out clamor, psych splurge, and fractured rock nostalgia.

Wrapped in cocoons of feedback and burnt reverb lies an otherworldly fascination with second hand oldies jaunts, radio rock anthems, and murky roots-inflected meandering. With effortless zeal, Vile also elicits fragments of Neil Young-esque ballads and the sort of dark country-blues six string rambling exemplified by Robert Johnson (or Charlie Patton, for that matter), channeling these sounds into his own outlandish balladry.

The stylized influences may be recognizable, but it is the way Mr. Vile subverts these things—twists them, submerges them beneath tweaked bargain basement drum machines, ambient drone, vocal manipulation, and a varied assortment of substance induced, feedback-ensconced aural trippage -that truly sets this outing apart from the pack.

A wonderful thing indeed, this knack for constant hitmaking.

Thank you Mr. Vile,

Sincerely yours,

 M.

Repercussions-No Peace EP (Feral Ward, www.feralward.com) Hardly the benefactors of anglophile dis-worship, epic swedish stylings, or retro punk clamor one might expect from the Portland/Austin/Tennesee conglomerate, lone star rippers Repercussions deliver simple, straightforward US hardcore–pus oozing warts and all–with a hint of crust for good measure, of course.

The band is comprised of members from a number of known DIY outfits past and present, including (but not limited to) Deathreat, Army of Jesus, Signal Lost, Pedestrians, and Cold Sweat. The considerable chops of the above-mentioned projects are very much intact (most notably the raging axe onslaught of Stan from Deathreat), and Repercussions’ sohpomore effort, “No Peace”, manages to sound even more unhinged than their debut 12″ (itself a frantically paced affair), with a bevvy of start and stop whirlwind rhythms, four chord salvos, and the occasional killer break crammed into each agile, tightly wound eruption.

Predictably, this band’s bombardment most closely mirrors that of Deathreat’s ‘less is more’ approach, though the end results aren’t always as impactful. Several numbers here seem rushed, lacking the distinctiveness and attention to detail that have made similarly minded recordings so powerful. Songcraft and musical variation largely take a back seat to brute, numbing impact, with each song functioning less as a distinctive entity than as part of the larger, start-and-stop wallop. There are certainly no anthems to speak of.

While never approaching the heights of Deathreat’s “Consider It War” LP or the recorded output of Talk Is Poison, avid listeners will note a similarity in the dynamic delivery, musical precision, and keen ear for occasional hooks brought to the fore. The end result is seldom mindblowing, but is far better than much of what passes for hardcore or punk these days. At key moments throughout its brief duration the burn is undeniable. -M.