Artist: Choke Chains 

Album: S/T

Label: Black Gladiator / Slovenly Recordings

Released: January 2016

Now here with Choke Chains’ release, we have an extremely hateful and dark record. I have to admit it took me awhile to understand where this band’s allegiance lies. It’s not quite garage: it’s not punk really. It’s not a rock and roll record either. I have to admit that by the 3^rd or 4^th time putting this one on, I realized exactly what it was. It isn’t any genre. You could perhaps call it post-punk, but even that would be selling it short and not giving it enough credit. This is one hell of a super group getting together to make what might be the most weirdly creative records I’ve heard this year. There isn’t anything to dislike here and offers something to understand. So lets take one of The Dirtbombs, who was also in Bantam Rooster, one of the Chinese Millionaires, and Lindsay, who used to be in No Bails. It’s just a weird combination of people. But here is the thing– it works. We have a group bringing a type of aggression that is not really heard in garage records to the here and now. This might be Slovenly’s most oddball release, but damn I love it. It’s evil, but quirky in its own way. I hope they have more to offer in the future because it’s a fantastic medium to the rest of what’s out there. I highly suggest everyone else should go back to the drawing board to rethink a little because this band is going so far out of the box you cant even see the box anymore. A much needed refresher from the norm. And, I give it an A+ for replay value too. I don’t feel safe after listening to this one– even a little creeped out. I love it.

By Justin Crumpton

 

Listen: https://slovenly.bandcamp.com/album/choke-chains-choke-chains-lp