Tuesday, March 3, 2009
AS FRIENDS RUST
Here we go again (no not the Shelter song) I’m trying my hand at reviewing again. This time it’s not an album, it’s a band. That band is As Friends Rust. Besides winning an award for having one of the best band names ever, they were actually pretty damn good.
I don’t feel like getting into the whole, who, what, where etc of the band but I will say they are from Gainesville, Florida. Vocalist, Damien Moyal you might remember him from such great bands such as Culture, Morning Again and oh let's not forget Shai Hulud for a short period after AFR. If you don’t know any of those other bands you should go check em out. To start out with I love the songs on 6 song EP. Especially Half Friend Town and Like Strings. Oh and their cover of the Circle Jerks Operation is great. The whole cd is fast and full of heartfelt lyrics. Damien’s voice has a great smooth aggression to it.
Their next album, Won is a great sophopmore effort which shows off AFR's maturity. The music is still fast but has great melodic breakdowns. Opening with a song like We On Some Next Level Shit is a great start. In a smart way it pokes fun at the kids that are always telling you what’s best for you. As far as great auto-biographical lyrics, Fourteen Or So has it nailed down. This song is fast and just filled with honesty. Laughing Out Loud probably has the best and most disturbing opening lyrics, “sometimes I’d like to know the insides of my wrist”. This song has great melodic/screaming, back and forth vocals. There’s just a great feeling of acceptance and fed up in this one song. The music echoes the lyrics perfectly. The record takes a darker slower turn. But it holds up. It’s not one of those records that your all amped on for the first 5 songs and than you have it on and it’s over and you didn’t even realize it. Ten ends the album perfectly.
Last record I’ll sum up is A Young Trophy Band in the Parlance of Our Times. Ok granted the title is kinda ehhh. The songs also gained wordy titles but their word play titles so it works. For example “more than just music, it’s a hairstyle”, wordy wise ass title and great song. It’s slower but still strong. A lot of it I believe has to do with Damien’s voice and lyrics. It maintained the honest and angst. The music also raised it’s levels. The rest of the band has a great way of mirroring the feelings in the lyrics, or vice versa. There is only six songs on the cd, so it does go pretty fast even though the songs are slower. Especially with a 46 second sorta ballad. And well than there’s the last song, Where The Wild Things Were. This is another one of Damien’s auto-bio songs. It basically picks up from where he left off. It starts fast than leads into a great breakdown and than picks back up. You start to understand his issues a little and his acceptance of himself with them.
If you ask me, if you like bands like Avail or even the Bouncing Souls, you’ll probably like As Friends Rust. The sincerity in each note and lyric is astounding.
THE LUNACHICKS
The year was 1994. I, along with Chris and some other of our friends made the trip into the city to see a great lineup at Irving Plaza. The Offspring may have been the headliners (don't laugh, back then, they weren't all about the pop and were actually a great act to see) but the real show-stealers in my book were a band called The Lunachicks.
As soon as they took the stage I'll have to admit I fell in love. There stood Theo Kogan, lead singer of The Lunachicks, decked out like a barbie doll on speed, grilled with tattoos, towering above all who gazed upon her. Sigh.... my heart and groin still remember that night, because it was the first time I saw an all female band actually kick some ass. Theo is one of the best front-person I have ever seen perform. She was the whole package. Gorgeous, talented and hysterical. Yes, to see a Lunachicks show and not laugh is pretty much unheard of. I was a fan from the moment she answered a heckler who yelled out "Show us your tits!" with a belly bursting belch from hell. I tell ya, a small part of me died when I heard she got hitched to Toilet Boys guitarist, Sean Pierce. (And let's not forget Gina Volpe, guitarist...she was friggen hot as well!)
The band formed in 1987 according to their bio. I got hooked on them when they released Binge & Purge in 1992. That album in my opinion showcases The Lunachicks at their most raw. Tracks such as Apathetic, Superstrong and This Is Serious are the top tracks and were all show-closers even in more recent years. The best way to describe The Lunachicks were by no means, redefining music in any way. They were all about having fun and kicking ass. But they did it in a way that empowered females but never shunned away the fellas.
One can find great tracks on all of their records. I kind of lost touch with them when they released Pretty Ugly, but Binge and Purge, Jerk of All Trades and Luxury Problem will always have a home in my iPod. As will any tattoo mags with Gina and Theo in them...double sigh...
(Since calling a hiatus in 2000, members of the band have went in various directions. Theo has been heading Theo and the Skyscrapers while landing various acting jobs. Gina Volpe is vocalist for the power trio, Bantam, who happen to be pretty damn kickass. Squid was, or is a tattooist in NYC someplace.)
~ GDEVIL
Labels: Rants and Raves, Reviews, Video
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