punk this week: alien nosejob, s.o.h., regional justice center + 7 more
Plus new ones from Celebrity Sighting, the Carp, Louse, Mitraille, and many others.
Welcome to Punk This Week, see/saw’s weekly column exploring the latest and greatest punk and rock’n’roll records. Alien Nosejob’s prolific streak of great-yet-unpredictable rock’n’roll records continues with Turns the Color of Bad Shit. The Madison scene’s got a crucial new record from Baby Tyler’s new group Celebrity Sighting. Cincinnati’s represented this week by Louse, while Cleveland arrives via the Carp. It’s all that plus a stellar Minneapolis hardcore debut and a wild one from Regional Justice Center.
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Alien Nosejob: Turns the Color of Bad Shit [Total Punk/Anti Fade/Drunken Sailor]
Alien Nosejob never offers the same record twice. Jake Robertson’s always pivoting, thinking about the next rock’n’roll vibe he’s going to fully inhabit. In some ways, this is the version of Jake that drew me in to begin with as a member of Ausmuteants. On “Bird Strike,” he’s accompanied by an ominous synth line as he screams about overarching doom. There are some stellar rock’n’roll hooks throughout this record, like on “The Ostrich” or “Trapped in Time.” I’m currently most obsessed with “Medical Treatment,” which feels like a new wave classic on the level of “Echo Beach.” After a hardcore record, some classic rock worship, and ’60s garage rock throwback, this one isn’t as clearly defined. It’s an Alien Nosejob record, and it’s time to acknowledge that Jake isn’t a chameleon trying to blend in—he’s an unbelievable songwriter with a distinct voice who happens to excel in seemingly every sphere.
