Terrible Twos on X! Records

This single from the Terrible Twos is a repress/additional press of their single from back in 2005 on  X! Records, who were nice enough to send this over along with the Johnny Ill Band and Tyvek single...pretty cool that they seem to be set on keeping everything in print, like this classic single I would have definitely missed out on by now. This interview from Termbo has the 5 piece's origins in Detroit and playing shows with the Dirtbombs or Frustrations...they're still at it heaed down to SXSW this year and putting out a full length on Urinal Cake Records...Nashville move over.

"Plunderball" has the dual guitars crushing heavy riffs, with a weird synth sound in the background, otherwise a real tough affair, lots of authorotative singing and WOOOOOWWW!, fun screaming. Like something related to the Make Up, but really they keep completely changing the melody up keeping it massive, real serious party, heavy rock and roll. Maybe there's a little dash of Sabbath, the timed power chords, with a heavy soul sounding blues freakout, alternating between this speed metal and scuzzy garage, all high freaking fi. They're really going for speed, this high hat rhythm is pretty insane, Chris or Craig, they sound like they go back and forth on vocals as this track gets szicophrenic, two distinct parts fighting with each other, but in the end it's all just a variation of the balls out punk in the garage sound that Detroit seems to have no problem fostering.

"Spitting Image" starts with the rumble fade in of feedbackand they are just as determined this time to rock that greasy blues, sharpie'd denim jacket rock again on this one. Attitude, bigger chords, with impressive guitar craft, noodling solo style melodies appear between the hyper chords. Lots of technical guitar... same goes for these insane drum riffs. I would be rocking along, head shaking with these guys but I keep getting caught up in this kind of crazy mathy skill of prog garage they're achieving, and just staring off into space.
I'm also missing a lot of these killer lines like

She was twice my age / like my mother with money

This B-Side is more of the shit kicking blue collar aesthetic, full of the blues and distortion, a JSBX sort of sound but with a hell of a team seriously putting a dense, skillful package together. If you're really, really good, can this still be called garage?

X! Records just wants you to pick this up, who said you had to start thinking and jamming bands into holes for pigeons...damn!

2 of Detroits finest from Cass records.

The terrible twos are in the Abe Vigoda land of punk for me, putting together weird tempos and changing direction, but with a synth under the whole thing. More guitar driven based on other tracks from their myspace and even more punk in delivery and lyric especially in Pipebomb Pipebomb where it's all teetering on the brink of collapse in nightmare oscillating synth...everything seems to have that haunted house feel of the unknown.
The other side is of course heavy hitters the Dirtbombs who are back with a dose of cramps garage-soul...this is the last few copies of this one and that will be it.

Cass records says:
First off is a triple tour split single between Detroit's finest weird punks Terrible Twos, Alabama's wild man Dan Sartain, and the crappy Dirtbombs. This was sold on their West Coast tour back in May, we have some leftovers and once you buy one your life may be complete.



Bird on the line is on Micks myspace and this is syrupy slow trombone bleating number, that's vaguely Tom Waits in tempo and dirty dirty brass, rain and liquor. The guitar line is barely falling off the strings. Mick is straining to get the notes out in something I wouldn't immediately pick out as being Detroit based...maybe some kind bayu swamp in the automotive waste.

Cass:
also available is the debut from "aw shucks" Mick Bassett and the Marthas. Mick writes a song that not only gets in your head, but it'll make you think as well. Does "getting in your head" mean making you think anyways? i don't know. he gave me "the keepers" on a cd-r over a year ago and i kept bugging him to let me put it out as a single. he wanted it on the b-side (weirdo) but my year-long wait is now everyone's gain. you will love it. i promise.

you can dig it all over at www.cassrecords.com
any other questions?

later...ben