Submission Hold Vol 2: featuring LOBSTERBOMB, Public Prism, Big in Sheboygan, The Sifted Few
It's that time of month for Submission Hold - the second in our series of mini reviews of submissions received here at NoNewWaveNoFun HQ . Once again, I've spent hours trawling through the seemingly never-ending submissions we get sent through the Contacts section of the blog and on our social media pages (Facebook here, Twitter here, Instagram here) to find 4 of the best that we've received from all over the world.
Last month's Submission Hold proved to be incredibly popular - in fact it is the most popular piece on the blog so far, with several hundred views to date. The artists from Vol.1 were sleeplore from Pennsylvania, ya from Spain (via Russia) and two from the UK - County Durham's Vice Killer and Kent's Uncool Paul. It's all the more reason to keep sending those new singles and E.Ps to the blog, as we're willing to listen to whatever you have to offer and who knows- it could be your music getting featured next month.
First of all this month, we venture to Berlin for a debut single by Garage Rockers LOBSTERBOMB (I'm told it has to be in all capitals.) Now the reality of the UK's decision to leave the European Union is starting to bite and tariffs on imports and exports begin to rise - here at NoNewWaveNoFun we're thanking our lucky stars that doesn't apply to good old-fashioned Rock n' Roll. I'll only get angry if I go any more into politics, so let's talk a bit more about the band and their recently released single.
LOBSTERBOMB are a three piece consisting of Nico Rosch (Guitar/Vocals), Vik Chi (Drums) and the rather wonderfully-named Ziggy Stardust lookalike Crayon Jones (Guitar). The band formed in 2020 with a view to mining their shared love of Glam, Punk and Garage Rock - there's no doubt that LOBSTERBOMB make absolutely no apologies for this.
Opening with a simple and effective drum beat that comes straight from The Cramps playbook and thrusts you straight into the track whether you like it or not - 'Yes Yes Yeah' is a rip-roaring opening statement for a band that draws equally on it's aesthetic appeal as it does it's love of the sleazy glamour of Rock n' Roll. The riffs are pure Glam - chopping and intertwining, vying for attention. Rosch's vocals have the perfect Punk growl that pitch somewhere between Poly Styrene from X Ray Spex and Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre.
With 'Yes Yes Yeah', LOBSTERBOMB have created an electrifying take on the colourful world they inhabit and although stylistically nothing new - it does enough to suggest there is plenty of life in the old Rock n' Roll dog yet.
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Public Prism - Almost Nothing E.P
From Berlin, we cross the pond and travel to Rochester in New York - home of songwriter and producer Rob Massar. The 'Almost Nothing' E.P is a collection of three songs that Rob sent to me in early January and they were born out of a crisis of identity. It led Rob to re-align his musical ambitions by learning more production and song crafting techniques. The songs on 'Almost Nothing' were intended to be part of an album when they were originally written in 2017, but Rob soon realised that it would serve him better to slow the process down - perhaps down to his love of Zen meditation.
The E.P begins with 'Ignite' - a song based around a simple strumming pattern that allows Massar's voice to take centre stage. The lyrics are simple and emotive reflections on life that are sung with the kind of resigned intensity that C Duncan does so well. The track is elevated half way through it's 2 minutes by what could either be a synth or a guitar put through a pedal - it's a clever touch that works well as a cover for the lack of chorus.
Next track 'Wash Away' is the strongest track on the E.P and has a much different feel from the opener. Instrumentation is much more varied and the guitar sounds are striking - sounding like they could come from St Vincent or David Bowie's 'Low' and 'Heroes' era. The lyrics are more abstract and cryptic; Ancient paths cascade with every colour is the phrase that jumps out - every syllable is deliberately enunciated for maximum impact. Title track 'Almost Nothing' is the most experimental work on the E.P, playing with synth sounds that can sometimes sound harsh and abrasive. A acoustic moment of relief allows the drama to build up again before brining all the elements together to finish.
'Almost Nothing' is not a name that was plucked out of thin air for this E.P - Massar is humble and self-deprecating suggesting that this is a "practise E.P" before he moves on to a more rounded experience. If this is the practise then the full experience is going to be well worth the wait.
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Big in Sheboygan - In Rat Park (they don't like the drugged water)
So first of all - an apology. A slight oversight on my part has meant that the next act haven't released a single or E.P for a little while. In fact, Big in Sheboygan haven't released anything since 2019.....oops. So let me humbly apologise with all the sincerity of Pritti Patel - I'm sorry if YOU feel I've let you down dear readers. The thing is, this band are absolutely superb at what they do and I couldn't resist writing about them - so sue me. You could complain to a Rock Ombudsman if you really want, but I'm sure they have bigger fish to fry. My blog, my rules - you get me blud?
So now that we're on the same page, let's talk about the music. Based in Essex, Big in Sheboygan are a Math Rock inspired instrumental band on Lonely Voyage Records - the home to bands of a similar persuasion like Lost in the Riots and Death and the Penguin. Their E.P 'Nathaniel' was released in a simpler time; before we feared a stranger breathing on us. The track that really caught my attention was 'In Rat Park (they don't like the drugged water'- a 3 minute rollercoaster of emotions with one of my favourite song titles for quite some time. (See the video below)
The song is a great showcase of Big in Sheboygan technical abilities as musicians, with twists and turns a-plenty. The opening riff chimes away pleasantly, feeling like it's grinning inanely at you rather than feeling very smug with itself - like some Math Rock riffs can. In fact, this a regular thing throughout 'In Rat Park' - the band enjoy playing and want to have fun. The Rhythm section enter in unison - the beat driving it along with sporadic fills and the bassline bordering on funk. There are several shifts in tempo throughout that make it impossible to know where the band are going to go next and there are echoes of Don Cabellero about it.
'In Rat Park' is an intricate and at times breath-taking example of the Math Rock spectrum, but the final climax turns the song into more conventional Indie Rock territory. It doesn't however lose it's charm as a result and it's a thrilling conclusion. What's clear too is that the band have a tight ship when it comes to quality control and editing, it's easy for bands of this nature to over-egg the pudding and write too many 8 minute opuses - at 3 minutes it's perfect and it's a matter of time before it wafts majestically over the main stage at Arctangent.
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We love a good mystery here at NNWNF, and providing one for us this month are The Sifted Few from Chicago. Taking a multimedia approach to their art, the band have created something truly unique with their new single 'The End of an Era'. From a writing perspective, The Sifted Few's enigmatic and vague insights into their world are problematic - it's not meant to be spelled out in brash terms. Take a look at their mission statement below with it's echoes of Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
Our well has sprung a leak. The cauldron is bubbling over. Earth’s dining table is trembling.
Broadcasting sounds and sights both seen and unseen from our humble wooded locale, nestled in the arms of Chicago. We are the living remnants of our former lives, the charred bits left in the pan, the salty crumbs, the once ‘sunny street that held the sifted few.’
Embracing the ephemeral, reclaiming lost art and art forms, creating simply to fight attrition - all while documenting a dying breed.
This is not the world we were meant to inherit, or is it?
Sounding like the kind of rhetoric coming from a demon inhabiting David Lynch's mind - I could write about that alone for a good four or five paragraphs, but it wouldn't be as elegant and elusive as that, would it? Best not then.
'The End of an Era' starts with the kind of haunting piano riff that British Sea Power talked about in their ode to Liberace, 'The Lonely'. The arrangement is sparse - with only minimal drums accompanying the piano. What immediately stands out are the lyrics that venture from despairing to deeply sarcastic - they appear to be lamenting the loss of opportunity and existence. You can imagine Nick Cave writing these lines. I'm afraid our press is less than glowing, Take our bows with butt cracks showing is delivered with a resigned sigh and canned laughter is added for extra emphasis - having the same effect as it does in Father John Misty's 'Bored in the USA'.
The arrangement swells with the emergence of a Glockenspiel and a Singing Saw - a sense of mourning in tune with the subject matter is developed. Let the shame run black with our mascara, looks like the end of an era now. A change comes in a lonesome Harmonica solo; giving the track a whiff of 'The Theme from Midnight Cowboy' by John Barry. The track comes full circle with all the musical elements combining with the disdain-filled lyrics reaching their logical conclusion - Don't let the door hit us on the way out. The canned laughter is again repeated, this time with prolonged applause. The overall corollary is a sense that 'The End of an Era' could be from ANY era and still be a captivating experience.
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The tracks have been added to our NoNewWaveNoFun Spotify playlist below, which features tracks previously reviewed by Cross wires, Mondegreen, ya, Lightning Books, The Shipbuilders, Pushpin and MANY MORE. Take a listen and subscribe below.
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