evil tone records

Punch The Boss b/w Down The Coast – The Crankees (Evil Tone)

There’s no prospect of a new dawn in Australian industrial relations with sentiment like this going around. Sydney’s Crankeesexpress something we’ve all felt on the A side, a furious little garage punk tune that’s fuelled in equal parts by Jimmy Meek’ssnakey guitar line, Rodney Todd’ssnarkey vocal and guest Hammond organ from producer Jay Whalley.What do we want? Puglism. When do we want it? Now.

The B side is almost as good, a wry ode to tree changing that keeps it simple and manages to namecheck Mollymook. There’s not a hint of garage slop; the band is tighter than the bends in the Princes Highway at Foxground with Meek’s guitar again to the fore. The production sounds great. Hopefully, they have an album in them. 

Buy a copy here. It's a limited edition. While you're at it, look around and listen to Evil Tone's other stuff. They're putting out some great stuff.

Defective World – The Escapes (Evil Tone)

The debut single for Sydney’s The Escapes has none of the sloppiness they make such a virtue of live. Guess it was a dry recording session. Not likely…

The title track is a garage snarler and a soild way to kick off. Sticksman Alan Hislop drives the other A side song, “Gonna Cry”, with a feel that’d peel paint. And who doesn’t love a drop-out and handclaps? Flip it over and “Electric Burden” doesn’t go anywhere fast, but closer “Don’t” sounds like The Monks on a VB bender, reduced to one-guitar minimalism.

It's a vinyl EP that was recorded by Jay Whalley at The Pet Food Factory in Marrickville so you know The Escapes will never sound better. Owen Foley’s cover art comes in two colours and is real enough to be scary. The only thing you need to take seriously here is putting your credit card or Paypal account on the line to make sure you get a copy before they sell out. 

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Tall Order b/w Something Inside - The Fangin’ Felines (Evil Tone)

It’s no tall order to like this brace of sassy and smart tunes from The Fangin' Felines, who come from Wollongong south of Sydney. There’s just the right blend of bawdy garage rock rawness and girl group sweets to rattle almost any I-94 Bar barfly’s cage.

“Tall Order” is catchier than a Chinese bat virus after a side order of snakeskin soup in a Wuhan roadside diner. It coms out all guns blazing on the back of a Jerry Nolan beat and a brash Carrie Phillis vocal, aided and abetted by fullsome harmonies and some coo-ing and whooping. Morgana Ancone’s deft guitar adds a light touch.

Flip the sucker over and “Something Inside” is another winner. An undulating melody and a rolling feel nail this one to the floor with the Felines again showing the value of solid live gigging and knowing their way around a studio. Not as immediately addictive but you'll get hooked soon enough. 

Surely a full-length album is only a formality? Meanwhile, grab this while it’s still available. The purchase link is below. 

Buy it on Discogs

Pain! b/w  Wheels on Fire - Smitty & B Goode (Evil Tone)

 Been a long time since they rock and rolled in person. Sydney trio Smitty & B Goodeisn’t the most prolific act in terms of releases, but they’ve put enforced time off to good use with this power-packed 45. “Pain!” inflicts more pleasure than its title suggests, flipping mild self-loathing on its head. Anger is an energy and Smitty’s assertive vocal and downstroke guitar is set against a fierce sonic brew, “turning gasoiine into a symphony of sound.” Tight as a fish’s, as they say. Flip it over for more of the same garage grit goodness. Carly’s sunny bass-tone suits the up-tempo mood. Succinct and catchy, it’s a short tun of 200 copies so grab yours here while you still can.

Neon City Lights b/w Get Loose – The Glycereens (Evil Tone)

‘Tis a taster for the forthcoming album from this well-credentialled Brisbane unit with past members of Boondall Boys, Mad Macka and Happy Times. You don’t expect bands to lead with their best track so the assumption is that it's is a flag for what’s to come with the top shelf stuff held in reserve. “Neon City Lights” isn’t bad but drags a tad and doesn’t really go anywhere, and falls short of the poppier songs that dotted the first album, “Hangin’ On”.

There’s major love, however, for the B side “Get Loose”, a cover of a rune from the late New Zealand band The D4, where The Glycereens' brand of fuzzed-out, bubblegum punk really shines. Vocalist Heli Puhakkabrings an appealing vocal blend of snot and cool to the party and her and Sol M Robinson’s guitars create a block of buzzing fuzz that’s fit to singe ears. The engine room sounds brutal on this, too. There are still copies on black vinyl here.