Darting Below Empty & Westward Bound

I mentioned Melbourne quintet Darts back in 2012 with their Habitual Slack EP - you can read and listen here. Well they are back, brandishing the sharp-edged debut album Below Empty & Westward Bound (out May 15 through Rice Is Nice). It's twelve tracks of undulating  rock angularity and ambiguity - wavering levels of arresting shouting, wailing and punching through stringent rhythms and an unhinged vocal performance from Angus Ayres. His Frank Black-meets-Isaac Brock whites-of-the-eyes delivery is pretty great. From the punching Iggy Pop swagger of 'Commanche', the swirling pseudo-surf-punk of 'Geek', the Pixies-cheek (with angelic keys in the quieter moments) of 'Push Me Thru' right down to the mariachi drumroll opening 'Dead' and the latter-day Modest Mouse narcissism of 'Solitary Refinement' (currently my favourite track). There are more generational connections of course, with the breathy brood of single 'Aeroplane' found me thinking of theredsunband and the Kelly sisters, albeit in a less shadowy realm. There are other 90s staples licking at the edges here - I even felt a Shudder To Think shiver in the bottom end (that could divide the crowd...). The album is ushered out with 'My Darling Bendingo', a tremulous yet emotive fadeout that was a curiously downbeat yet uplifting end... Such a juxtaposition sounds ridiculous, but its that off-kilter ramble and frission in friction that makes Below Empty & Westward Bound such an enticing prospect.

Darts are supporting Alpine on an Australian tour in June which sees them sweep through the southern end of the country alongside another great lil band Pearls. They will be launching Below Empty & Westward Bound just before that in Melbourne at The Shadow Electric, Saturday June 20. Hopefully heading north thereafter.

PREMIERE: Slonk Donkerson Shape Their Own Faith

America has had a surge in clamorous guitar bands that look as much into the past, specifically the 90s angular rock implosion with off-kilter, charming melodies led by the likes of Malkmus and Brock, as they do into the 21st century and beyond (see Milk Music, Cloud Nothings). Brooklyn isn't replete of slacker noise pop bands (see Parquet Courts for its most recent incarnation). A new act to potentially join these ranks is Slonk Donkerson. The trio know each other well, having played in bands together since elementary school. Slonk Donkerson itself has been around for three years, albeit in sporadic fits and bursts as its members attended college spread out across the States. Nevertheless they have produced two LPs and one EP in this time. Their incoming EP Watching Every Channel At Once should push them that little bit closer to the spotlight. 

Watching Every Channel At Once comes out tomorrow - here is the opener of the EP.

Slonk Donkerson - The Shape Of Faith

OBNIII's Vs The Walking Dead

The 21st century has really turned up the heat in TV land. I don;t watch TV per se - my television has been sitting in the back of my car for the past five weeks - but I DO watch TV series. Breaking Bad, Boardwalk Empire, Parks And Recreation, Community - these (and quite a few more) are my go to's, to the point where I lose large chunks of time and a film or book rarely suffices (the book mainly because I'm lazy, and the last book I attempted to read A Pretty Good Read, an unofficial "biography" of Modest Mouse - was the biggest piece of shit Ive ever attempted. Seriously, Alan Golsher should have disappeared up Isaac Brock's arsehole in the first five pages. There's a good story in there, if you could past all the blatant cock-sucking...). Currently, my poison of choice is The Walking Dead. I'm just finishing season 2 and beginning season 3. A lot of people had complaints about the elongated farm sequence of season 2, but to me there was something 'real' about that - the stalling and scrabbling for normalcy in a apocalyptic wasteland, the core human emotions still struggling for a place in such a dire landscape... But yeah, the prison can't come quick enough.

ANYway, so this week Ive been watching that, and listening predominantly to last year's self-titled record from Austin TX reprobates OBNIIIs. I actually chose to pull this one out again solely because of its tenuous connection - what with the black spectres in front of a blood-red background on the cover. But the straight up, balls to the wall rock and roll that tumbles out of the speakers is primal, vintage stuff - if the world turned to pot, with everything degenerating to the basest of terms where survival is key, this would be the perfect soundtrack. There are elements of Death right through to Fu Manchu in these rollicking tracks, with some blues and psych mingling at the edges. But the attitude that pervades this record - confidence to burn - is infectious and ridiculously true to form. Many bands attempt this - very few nail it in such a pure fashion. If the shit went down tomorrow, this would be in my sweaty palm as I fled for high ground. Get OBNIIIs through Tic Tac Totally here. Trust me, it's worth it - even if it is saved for a zombie infestation.

OBNIIIs - You Wanna Bitch 
OBNIIIs - Stick and Move
OBNIIIs - People Are Afraid

The Slack Habits Of Darts

Triple J does a hell of a lot wrong, but does a lot right too, including the leg-ups it gives to young bands. The best example has been the Unearthed series which has spawned success stories such as Grinspoon down to the recent Stonefield. One band that you may not be overly aware of is Darts (formerly The Darts), some indie-punk skids from Melbourne. They were unearthed in 2009, played Groovin The Moo, and are about to launch their debut LP Habitual Slack next month. Not all the tracks work - I haven't worked out why yet, but despite the Isaac Brock delivery, 'Daughter' really, REALLY grates on me - but the unhinged howl from Angus Ayres on 'Killer On The Tracks' and 'Damaskus II' combine with some tight musicianship to present something pretty exciting.


Habitual Slack will be out in July. Here's a taste of what to expect.

Ruined Via Demonic Talk