The Pond? Michael's In The Pond!

Ah, I've always wanted a legitimate reason to quote that here on Planet Masala, and thanks to Brooklyn's resident rust-edged slackers Shark? (who I've spoken of before when they released True Waste in 2011), it has been handed to me on a platter like the head of John the Baptist.

But we aren't here to talk about Amity Island OR gruesome moments in biblical history - we are here to get excited about California Grrls, Shark?'s debut single release (out through Old Flame Records - responsible for putting out Total Babes, The Pharmacy and early Cloud Nothings - earlier this month on blood-red cassette), which is in itself a taster of their incumbent LP Savior. What impresses me about this band is their cross-sectional sound - the off-kilter surf rock that Black Francis and his Pixies were guilty of, the loose DIY blueprint embedded in the compositions a la Robert Pollard at his most acerbic - yet there is nothing truly malicious here - its four dudes getting rolling drunk on rocking out. Which makes the question mark that signifies their band name so poignant - sharks are fucking cool, the king of their domain, but they are also pretty damn dangerous, which doesn't fit - or does it? Confusion reigns. Much like 'California Grrls' - a quiet intro leads to some skronky shambling garage rock that holds all but disdain, which would have David Lee Roth rolling in his grave, such is his love for the West Coast ladies (what do you mean, he isn't dead?)

California Grrls can be bought here.

Digging A Pharmaceutical Grave

Seattle's own garagers with a tinge of psych pop The Pharmacy released their Dig Your Grave 7" through Kind Turkey Records recently. As expected, it's pretty darn good. It's also a little schizophrenic. The A-side is where the action happens, all bombast and devil-may-care, whilst the two tracks on the B-side show a mellower act filled more with chagrin than sunny charm. It intrigues, and may bode well for their next foray into the long form.


Grab Dig Your Grave here.

The Pharmacy - Dig Your Grave

Also, here is the vid for the title track - it's pretty cool! (Plus a wee bit NSFW, just in case you work in a church or somethin'...)

There Are Drugs At This Pharmacy

I had heard of The Pharmacy before last week, but hadnt paid them any mind. Great zine Loud and Quiet gave their newie, 3rd LP Weekend (out on Seayou Records), an indifferent 5/10, and I was happy to go with their assertions. But I was sent an email almost a month ago about their imminent UK tour, which I am pretty sure has come and gone, and I missed it. Woe is me, because Weekend is actually a funky slice of distorted 60s stoner pop that tightropes between lo-fi and care-less with lazy abandon - and that is a compliment. Tracks like 'Stoner Girl' and 'Did You Ever Doubt Yourself?' echo from the annals of the Wilson brother's long lost triplet, the one that was locked up under the stairs. I imagine them from their music - a fuzzy wood veneer TV that weighs a ton, white static flickering up and down the screen, a clean cut band in a yellow walled studio warbling tunes that the worn out speakers cant handle, coming out all left field and skewed - except that is the way the sound is intended. There are some nice surprises here - middle track 'Interlude' is an eerie warble that extends beyond its moniker, or even the length of most of the 'normal' tracks - but the biggest surprise is how accessible and well constructed it is amidst the sunny dazed menagerie of sounds the production seems to imply. This Seattle band are worth checking out, indeed spending a lazy weekend with.

Weekend is out now.

The Pharmacy - Clockwork

The Pharmacy - WAYDWYL