There is a bunch of great punky stuff going on in and near Adelaide in South Australia, the place has a rich history of punk and the new bands popping up in the area are worth being excited about, for example Burnout and Collateral Damage. A split release titled “Threesome” recently emerged from this community, it features my favourite funny punks The Packets, alternative rock band Attachment Theory and garage punk band Hells Hoist. The release has a runtime of around 26 minutes and features 9 tracks in total, with 3 from each band there is enough to work out if you like them.
This release was lucky enough to get a launch show to support it and free copies of the CD were given out at the show
Kicking things off with a track called “I’m Gonna Be Drunk” (2:19) is The Packets. As far as the music goes, the verse parts are softer with muted chords always leading to a more energetic and powerful chorus, it really packs a punch. The lead guitar part doesn’t kill the energy or momentum of the song and the ending seems well thought out. The lyrics are pretty funny, it has an almost anthemic quality when the vocals do the chorus parts. The song leads well into the next track “BALKI” (2:09) by Attachment Theory. it has a strong and energetic pop punk type intro that reminds me of something from those “Punk Rock Is Your Friend” compilations by Kung-Fu Records. I like the textured pattern the guitar plays through the verse parts, the switching between palm muting and open chords adds some great contrast. The song features plenty of strong build ups with pre-chorus parts and the melodic leady stuff at the end is nice. The vocals are clean and shifts from almost laid back or dragged out to a bit more urgent.
The Packets have been around for a long time but still don’t act their age, their quirky punk infused sound always has a catchy nature with lyrical content that is equal parts disgraceful, absurd and hilarious.
The first track by Hells Hoist is “No More” (1:57) it is track 3 on the CD. It starts with strings, a bass intro and guitar slide all with a traditional garage punk distorted tone. The fuzzy guitar plays a handful of chords in a fast manner. Lyrically this song is a simplistic but catchy break up song. The lyrical hook in the verse parts is “I ain’t going out with you” followed by the chorus hook “no more”. It has a fadeout/feedback ending. The next track is “Bitch” (3:06) by The Packets, I’m still making up my mind on this one but it’s catchy as hell with massive amounts of guitar wankery, I don’t skip it but I’m not sure what to make of it.
Track 5 is “I Feel It” (3:31) by Attachment Theory, it like the way this song starts. The vocals have a 90’s vibe, the verse parts have that familiar whiney bit and there are a few hooks to catch throughout the song. Musically it is an alternative rock track, it feels very guitar driven with a pop punk sounding progression of distorted power chords, the leady guitar parts are simple and expressive. It’s a solid track but a little different to the first one.
The sixth song is “Get 2 No U” by Hells Hoist, lyrically it feels like the opposite of their first track. The music is the same stuff again with a solid sounding garage punk type track that hits hard to a fadeout/feedback ending. There did feel like a drop in sound quality from the last track but its probably due to the style differences between it and the previous track.
The next track “She Thinks I’m A Cunt” (3:54) is my favourite of these new tracks from The Packets. I really like the bass intro and the way the guitar enters softly with some grunge vibes. The verse parts start with the same solid bass line and halfway through the guitar enters with that leady riffy part. The chorus parts pack a punch and have an anthemic quality combined with the kind of catchy lyrical hook that you can’t help but sing a long to.
The song “Noodles & Gravy” is track 8 on the CD, the opening reminds me of “hotdog in a hallway” by NOFX but by about 15seconds in you can tell this is more of an alternative or grunge type song. the vocals are very rock n roll with a bit of flair.
The final track is “Influwanker” by Hells Hoist, it’s another garage punk type track that lyrically digs at influencer types on social media platforms. It really paints a picture of someone who thinks they are more important than others and is very self absorbed. Musically this is much the same as all their other songs, it is their style and they are great at it, so do yourself a favour and check out there back catalogue.
Overall this is great little release for anyone into rock based music, it is sprinkled with alternative, garage, grunge and pop noises to keep it interesting. Message the bands facebook pages to hunt down your own copy or bring money to a show and pick one up there.
