This week we look at the latest releases from The Follow Ups and Artifiseer, plus a new (old) EP from Monsters.
Matt Carter
The Follow Ups – …don’t like you either
Some formulas rarely need tweaking. The Ramones began hammering out tunes more than 40 years ago and now, all these years later, they’ve become a genre all their own, or at least a genre within a genre. When we compare a band’s sound to being similar to The Ramones, certain elements immediately come to mind – a handful of simple, huge chords, guitars and bass playing in tandem and rock-steady drums holding it all together. Throw in a few “oohs” and “awhs” and the occasional “oh-e-yeah” and you’re there. Countless bands have done it, are doing it and will do it. The Ramones are one of the few bands you can straight up clone without being attacked by the masses. It’s an interesting phenomenon.
Moncton’s The Follow Ups are one such band. Their new full-length album, …don’t like you either, is just what you’d expect. Like your favourite old jacket or that worn out pair of socks you simply can’t part with, The Follow Ups have crafted their own comforting take on the high energy aforementioned specifics that is both an ode to the godfathers of american punk rock and a platform for a whole other form of nostalgia. With songs about monster movies, professional wrestlers and even modern day politicians, …don’t like you either is everything your Ramones loving punk rock heart desires.
Monsters – Monsters
Let’s keep this nostalgia train moving! One-time Fredericton horror punks Monsters tap straight into the veins of a young Glenn Danzig to deliver four songs that could almost be confused for Misfits’ originals. The instrumentation is simple, a little rough around the edges and the effects on the vocals help to dial in that low-fi sound that defined the Misfits’ early catalogue. Recorded more than 20 years ago by a lineup that included at least one member of present day doom rockers Helm, it’s nice to hear this blast from the past…and just in time for Halloween!
Artifiseer – Falsify
It’s been four months since Saint John musician Ian Livingstone shared the song Lavender, the first single from the forthcoming debut full-length by his electro-psychedelic project Artifiseer. Today Livingstone released Falsify, the album’s second single. Following in a similar vein to his last release, Falsify is a dense mix of layered tones and percussion that rise and recede beneath Livingstone’s warm vocal track. Full of fleeting melodies and whirling shifts in texture that evolve continuously throughout the track’s four-minute run time, Falsify is one more reason to get excited about this album. Hoping to hear the full collection before the end of the year.
Send us your Music!
If you are a New Brunswick artist or group, have new music on the way and would like to be considered for a future edition of Midweek Music Mix, send us the details at gridcitymagazine(at)gmail.com
