The Cramps - Urgh! A Music War

Mustard hasn't been doing much except surviving the winter at this point, in case anyone was wondering. To quote some guys who liked to show their nuts off in camel toe tight jeans, "good times, bad times, no one seems to care." Working on three reviews of three very different yet raging bands that are in the here and now, so I guess expect those over the course of the next several days. My old friend Karin (Ophelia Necro is her DJ name on KDVS) on Facebook posted a link to the second best Cramps footage you'll ever see, the first being their live set at Napa State Mental Hospital. Been meaning to rip the Ohio Demos box set, but I haven't been ripping much lately. In the meantime, on this, the eve of Chinese New Year and coincidentally the Black Moon, in memory of Lux and the beast that was the Cramps...

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIQR_3TPtJw&w=560&h=315]

Someone has uploade the whole flick to https://ulozto.net/!2qwxBtNC/urgh-a-music-war-1981-mkv" target="_blank"&gt;Ulozto</a>...just in case

Pornostroika Dadaifi - Weimar Helldisco (free download)

Here I go repeating myself, or perhaps coming full circle, as I find myself doing a lot, not just around here. I visit with a band, focus on them, and then on to the next, while that same band continues on with life, sometime sticking to it and creating more. This is as it should be and I hope that all creators, never lose that spark. And spark indeed is what my old friends Pornostroika Dadaifi continue to do. A freaking shower of sparks as their enthusiasm is overflowing with creativity, brimming with disgust. Here's the story I got from them, "This is a release about the economic downfall of Greece,the similarities with the weimar regime and the rise of Greek facism!It is against the neoliberal totalirism,the nazis and the greek mass media.It is a mix of old industrial music with punk and electro. It is an attack on the POP TOTARILISM and as you can assume by that, Laibach and other pioneers of industrial music have a strong influence in our music and image.The release is free as everything we have released from 1999.It's our 10th album." As I said we've come full circle, and rather than repeat myself, because this is more of the same, you can check out my take on their Erotas Sta Hronia Tis Porneias release. I will say that, I don't understand a word these guys are saying, it's all Greek to me (literally), but you can tell that whatever it is, I know it's social/political, it's filthy, loathsome and repugnant. It almost pains the singer to sing/say it. Greek is a fucked place, has been for a while now, they're on the forefront of where this world is headed, so there's plenty to sing/talk about. These guys are busy with what they do, they have a MySpace and a Facebook. The also do virtual zines (they're in Greek too)... ZERO GEOGRAF 05 ZERO GEOGRAF 13 For the most part the music is kind of a techno, new wave kind of deal, but with those distasteful vocals. Here's my three favorites, I had the guys translate and give sort of summary (for some reason Wordpress is not recognizing Greek script, thus the gibberish)...

3.asshole(pop totalism) Is about a rich guy who don't care about the poverty all over him.He is too drunk with the pop culture... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avmxAUaduzk?list=PLyCIiYOkTE0hCxd12V_o82R6106iQEZwM&amp;w=790&amp;h=593] 7.humiliated artists Is about the kind of artists who support the governments against the peoples will and revolution [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jb2J93uwvi0?list=PLyCIiYOkTE0hCxd12V_o82R6106iQEZwM] 10.carnivorous sheep Ιs about the "simple" "innocent" people who want always to follow the leaders even if it always ends with war and massacres. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAHfF_rb6yA?list=PLyCIiYOkTE0hCxd12V_o82R6106iQEZwM&amp;w=790&amp;h=593]

The whole thing is free as is everything the do so get this release HERE or HERE. If you dig this then check out their Discography.

Sharkmuffin - 1097 7"

If you like three piece, all lady, garaged out bands, Sharkmuffin is for you...a beast of a band. Here's their blurb, "Sharkmuffin have spent a busy year and a half since their formation tackling SXSW, releasing a self-titled 7”, their first EP She-Gods of Champagne Valley in April, and dropped their latest EP, 1097, on the heels of seven CMJ shows, proving that this all-female garage noise-pop trio can't be stopped. Sharkmuffin serves up their second single “QuarterMachine,” offering a taste of their pedal-to-the-metal style that Paste Magazine pegged as, “badass riot grrrl,” showing they’re not, “afraid to get dirty with noisy riffs and gritty vocals.” (Leading Us Absurd)" These ladies have a huge sound, maybe it's in the heavy production, but I think it's more about passion and energy. I'm an EP kind of guy, my attention span says it must be that way, but this 7" goes by way too fast. The vocalists blows me away with this Stevie Nicks in combat boots thing going on, really a compelling voice with the perfect blend of sweetness and savagery. Musically, overall, it's definitely a modern garage thing, two tunes worth big wave fuzzed out surf, one of balls to the wall heavy hitting post-post-punk, and finally this Pixies meets Sonic Youth mid tempo slammer. The ladies look mild mannered enough, but judging by the delightful racket make, there is a devilish side in each one of them. They've been mentioned in much bigger monsters than our humble Mustard Relics, SPIN, The Village Voice, and Paste Magazine...so don't take my word for it. They are well represented with all the usual sites that you can access from website aptly named, Sharkmuffin and of course pick this bad boy up there as well. Their Soundcloud is where you can listen to this 7" and their other releases, but I think this 7" is their best so far. Here's my favorite tune, even though they all rock... [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/TEN-TEN_89957947-Sharkmuffin.mp3"][/audio]

Give the rest of the tunes a listen below...

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/5410189" params="color=ff6600&amp;auto_play=false&amp;show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="450" iframe="true" /]

...not on the 7" but still a beautiful day at the beach... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEWO5v9caro]

Reacharounds - Living in the Future LP

Band name of the year for sure here, Reacharounds...yeah! Wish I had thought of that name when I was playing music. Joe hit me up and without even asking offered to send me a hard copy, of which only 200 were made, so right off the bat I was feeling special. That was the end of the special feelings though because this is not some happy shit. My initial response to him, after he had mentioned they were inspired by the likes of the Minutemen and the Circle Jerks, "Got the record and completely blown away man. Not the most uplifting, some seriously angry shit. Reminds me of a band I used to listen to back in the 80s called the Nihilistics, but you guys are much better musicians. I hear a little bit of that Minutemen snazzy jazziness there too." There's not a bright moment in the lyrics to these songs, if it's not rabid frothing at the mouth angry, it's serious as cancer hopeless. "It's a good day for a war It's a good day for the end of the world. It's a good day for a war It's a good day let's end it now." Nothing sophisticated, just simple and to the point...I like that. I kind of admire it, because there is really so much to be angry and feel hopeless about these days, it's numbing after a while. Musically, as I said, these guys have a little bit more talent than the Nihilistics and have a little bit of complexity in their post-hardcore sound, but it's still raw and ugly most of the time. The first tune, "Excrement"... [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/01.Reacharounds-Excrement.mp3"][/audio] Varying speeds, varying tempos, keep it from getting repetitive and make each tune interesting in their own way. Straight out of Springfield Missouri (isn't that where the Simpsons are from) these guys are probably the best thing that town has to offer. They have a Facebook, so you can socialize with them there. They have a Bandcamp, where you can listen to about half the songs on this album and all the songs their previous and equally killer 7" (they sound even more Minuteman-ish on that, maybe even a little early Meat Puppet-esque thing going on). Last but not least they have a Bigcartel, where you can buy their shit and support the band.  They haven't got this LP there yet but expect that soon as well as digital downloads (the LP comes with those).  Listen to some more if you like... http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1111500233/size=small/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/

Tom Thum

When man himself is the instrument and talent just oozes out of his pores...

[video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Beatbox-brilliance-Tom-Thum-at-TEDxSydney.mp4"][/video]

Prayers - Ready to Bleed video

San Diego in the house again in the form of killwave artists, Prayers. I posted their first video From Dog To God not to long ago, but since then my old friend Rafael Reyes and his compadre/bandmate Dave Parley, have been busy with their killer Cholo Goth thing. You can now hit them up and get first hand updates at Facebook. And even better than that, they now have a whole LP worth of tunes available for download at CD Baby (hoping and praying they will come up with some vinyl out of all of this). Huge fan of these tripped out souls, who drink deep from the well that was early 80's, late 70's new wave/post punk. They reinvent, reinterpret and renew, to create this savage beast lurking in the shadows of some dark alley.  This is their time now to come out and show themselves, the moon is full.  There's nothing complex here to get lost in, minimal synth with stark vocals and heartfelt lyrical content.  As serious as solitary confinement.  The guys, with a the help of some very talented videographer type friends, have blessed us with another video of another one of the tunes on their LP...dark, brutal, mystical, sexy. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iakffnTNT5w&w=790&h=444]

Reagan Youth - Live At CBGB Volume One 7"

Strange image (only the Japanese) yet familiar feeling on this my 500th post. A shit load of posts, most of which have essential listening and of course my maybe not so essential babblings. I have enjoyed it almost every step of the way and I know that at least a few folks have gotten something out of it. Gone are the days of posts with 20+ comments, with honest to goodness dialog. I'm not sure if that's because this place is tired or, what I'm leaning towards, the day of the blog is past...replaced by the superficial Facebook experience.  Still getting tons of hits though, which at least indicates people are coming to the page in some kind of voyeuristic way.  I hope that my passion for music still shines bright. On a side note, Wendy wanted you to know that today is my 45th birthday (she gave up on life at 48).  Not sure what to think of this one, I don't feel that old.  Well, I guess I should say that mentally and physically (a burnt out brain stuck in a worn out body) I feel much older than that, but emotionally and in terms of maturity, I still feel young.  Too young, I've seen way too much shit not to have some wisdom under my belt.  Maybe it's tucked away in there somewhere, waiting for that perfect opportunity to present itself.  Was going to take the day off, but got reminded last night that I have some work related shit on my calendar...oh well. Wanted to pick something special for this 500th post, but had a hard time nailing down exactly what special means. Stuck with that idea of "hard time" and decided to focus on Dave Insurgent, who, towards the end, was the epitome that idea. Not that this place has been difficult, it has actually been a ray of sunshine, but I too have been familiar with "hard times". Of Course Dave's experience was tragically worse, with an insatiable heroin addiction, homelessness, getting beaten nearly to death, mother accidentally killed by father, having his girlfriend killed by serial killer Joel Rifkin and finally, almost predictably, suicide by overdose in 1993. I was too busy with my own life to have known about these events until recently, but back in the mid-80s he was one of my favorite frontmen of one of the better hardcore bands of the time. My first exposure to Reagan Youth must have been in 1984, on the legendary P.E.A.C.E. compilation, with their anthem "Reagan Youth".  There's not a dud on that whole comp, but Reagan Youth's input was top notch.  Maybe a year or two later I saw the band on one of those Flipside Video things and Dave's stage presence was just incredible, he could ad lib, move around the stage and really belt out thought provoking words.  Kick myself, to this day, as I know I had at least one opportunity to see them live (probably chose to get drunk instead).  In looking for info for this post, it turns out that cooler than a culo Aesop had written up a nice tribute to Dave and a link to RY's only official release, which is now dead...found it for you though from the less cool Hardcore Punk Reviews and it actually includes the songs on this 7" (what do you know, you could skip my post altogether as some thing non-essential, dispensable or repetitive).  The band is back together now, which is interesting, pretty sure it's just the original guitarist, I guess a guys gotta make a buck.   Anyway, this is a nice quality boot, from 1984... Degenerated Go Nowhere I Hate Hate U$A Brave New World / Urban Savages My Generation

the show I missed at the Olympic in LA (I have the flyer somewhere)...

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dLCK_ssF14&w=560&h=315]