Sulpher Lights - self released

More singles reinforcing the invasion from Australia, this one out of Brisbane where the Sulpher Lights apparently felt like sending this halfway around the world so I could wallow around in their own brand of scuzzy garage punk. These three barely keep it together night after night and we're just lucky enough that they managed to throw a mic up in the middle of this and hit record. Sometimes you are concerned with other things like the chords and number of beers left in the fridge than radio friendly compression.

A-Side's "Cowboy" is wearing sunglasses in this modern dustbowl feel but I guess they want a western sound for the track named "cowboy" and it breaks into a rougher reverb jangle guitar that's lost in the back of tight spring distortion. This guy is yelling, not really able to get past the high treble of this static hiss but he's got a narrow range and makes this punk between the real lonesome sounds, like they forgot to switch the pedal back to the hardcore crunch distortion. They found that special reverb that echos and bounces around leaving the whole track to do it's bidding. Damaged and distanced, a lot like deadbolt, it's almost ominous in how dark. It's far off relatives were involved in the surf scene but times have changed and these guys have turned it into a mugging. "Nothing" has more straight forward balls on this one, but the messy vocals are snottier and carelss as they get right into the face of this distortion like Johnathan Richman in his roadrunner Sulpher gets right to work, all emotion, forgetting any kind of self restraint. The surf ghosts are heavy with a candle lit for JAMC leather here and late 70s punk sounds, blasted out, cavernous and tense. Losing it with nothing to lose.

B-Side's "Beat You up" - I appreciate that they chose to craft individual songs with a thred of shitty punk vocals with more to the guitar work or drum track. It's a real primitive direct sound, all about the things this predator is going to do. Someone that's terrorizing right to yuor face, this is what I'm going to do. Get ready. Trash can rock at it's finest. Not much to laugh about because they almost seem serious. Sulpher Lights are like Life Stinks? They have it more together. Bring it on.

Import direct from the band or from Sorry State here in the US.