Noise for Zeros

Tank Tracks LP
Slovenly, 2014

While their singles on Volar Records were fun electropunk that paid homage to Métal Urbain and the charming dummy punk of The Spits, this debut from San Diego’s Stalins of Sound ups the recording quality and songwriting to a level that rivals the work of any of their influences or contemporaries like The Lost Sounds. Like the crazed army vet who stole a tank and plowed through the streets of their hometown back in 1995 — the inspiration for the album art and title — the Stalins manage to steer their sound in directions that no one can see coming, pulling the best aspects of drum machine punk ala Big Black, the raw industrial burst of Babyland, and the coming-out-of-your-skin fury of Black Bug.

LINKS

Buy Tank Tracks at Slovenly Records

Stalins of Sound on Bandcamp

Big Day for Blimps 7″ EP
Self Released, 1989

A handful of bands get referenced to a degree that it almost becomes a insult when they’re used to describe a lesser-known band. The work of Fugazi, Slint, Black Flag and others get name dropped so much that you can’t help but dismiss a band described as such, assuming that they try too hard to follow in the footsteps of a greater band. That hazard shouldn’t really stand when those bands’ collective output is in fact so noteworthy that any band that earns such a nod should at the very least be worth checkin’ out once. Don’t Mean Maybe definitely fall in that camp with a sound that admittedly cribs more than a few notes from The Minutemen — shit, the cover of this debut 7″ is even an homage to their 1984 landmark double LP Double Nickels on the Dime — but this San Diego trio’s slightly more forceful twist to their songs that makes this 7″ a compelling listen. If you love The Minutemen, you’ll find it hard to resist this one or their Doctor Dream Records releases.

DOWNLOAD
Don’t Mean Maybe – Big Day for Blimps EP (13.8mb Zip file)

LINKS
Don’t Mean Maybe albums on iTunes

(Germo) Phobic LP
Headhunter Records, 1997

Friends and family rarely understand what drives a person to spend countless hours sifting through cubic acres of vinyl in dingy record stores, cataloging and obsessing over music that most people find more worthless than the series of descending pricetags stuck on its jackets. And we’re not talking about collecting. That people can sorta understand. There’s a point to finding something rare and worth a lot of money. For me, however, it’s been hard to explain the thrill of finding something I wasn’t really even looking for, something I stumble across randomly that totally hits the spot — something makes all the searching worthwhile. Whether it’s rare and valuable or worth next to nothing, I could care less. As long as I continue to find music that kicks ass buried in those dingy record stores, you’ll find me happily flipping through the stacks in search of my next fix. This somewhat hard-to-find sophomore album from Tanner is a perfect example. Their debut LP Ill-Gotten Gains found a coveted place in my collection alongside other San Diego greats like Hot Snakes and The Night Marchers (both featuring Tanner’s Gar Wood) and I’ve picked up some of their singles when I’ve come across them. I didn’t even know they had another album, so when I came across this I knew it’d be worth checking out. I was right. This one picks up where their debut left off with tight, punchy riffs solidly played over earnest vocals and hooky songwriting, maybe even better than they did on their first LP. It’s a smoker that will keep me searchin’ for the next batch of quality tuneage.

DOWNLOADS

Tanner – “AKA Meltdown”
Tanner – “Booty”
Tanner – “2 Parts Gas”

LINKS

Official Tanner site