Hard-hitting Melbourne/Naarm garage-punk crew The Backs are following up a couple of EPs with a new single – the first in a planned series coming out this year. ‘Godzilla 1954’ is a potent heater that shines a spotlight on the growing white nationalism movement in Australia and its undeniably destructive nature.
It’s been 15-odd months since Melbourne hard-rockin’ trio Power took us on a high-octane joyride with their Turned On LP, and now someone’s gone and given them the damn keys again. This outing, Power is only zipping a quick circuit with a two-track 7-inch single, but they’re pressing the accelerator even harder than before. Power peels out and away with a blistering intensity that leaves nothing behind but a scent of petrol fumes and burnt rubber.
Draped in black leather and black denim, Melbourne’s full-moon rock’n’rollers ROT T.V. are on the cusp of dropping their very first 7-inch single. The single’s A-side track F.D.A. is a suitably full-throttle introduction. Here – fuelled by a hungry intensity and boasting a carnivorous edge – ROT T.V. circles like a pack of predatory animals, gradually wearing down your defences until they’re close enough to bite.
Buffeted by a forceful gale, Melbourne trio CLAMM’s latest track ‘Dog’ is undoubtedly a pummelling hard-rock clanger. As potent their high-speed noise is, CLAMM is also attuned to a higher wavelength, proving that there’s always more to the music than what first hits the ears.
Punchy and vagarious hard-rock outfit Drunk Mums are building up momentum towards another potent assemblage of hard-bitten noise. The band’s new album Urban Cowboy will be moseying over the horizon as the sun sets on 2018, but the Melbourne-via-Cairns malcontents are kicking the party off early with ‘Roll With The Punches’. The track is a hefty power-pop kicker about getting beaten down by life but never collapsing under the weight of its bullshit, proving beyond all doubt that nothing brightens a mood better than loud music.
Weirdo Wasteland is an Australian-based music blog that examines musical endeavour from the cultural fringe. The site regularly features reviews and interviews from the underground scenes from Australia and New Zealand. Weirdo Wasteland acknowledges the original custodians of the land upon which it operates. Sovereignty has never been ceded. To get in touch, contact: weirdowasteland (at) gmail.com