Thursday, July 21, 2005



Out there in Slovenia, the action shows no signs of abating. Tim Kerr has been out there working his magic on various projects which includes the next CRAZED FARMERS instalment. However, that's down the road apiece, for now check out THUNDERBABIES. A three piece with a swell line in '77 Lower East Side swing to their raunch. Brane Thunderbaby reckons that his combo provides "real raw and fresh r'n'r music" and he's not wrong. Sending a solid, simple cattleprod-like jag up the arse of what tries to pass itself off as the real deal on this end. These T'babies beat their material until it's a thick paste that's pretty bruising but in a good way. "Don't Try To Shut Me Down" sounds like a Nomads title strapped onto a garage AC/DC lollup. Yep, these three kids kick up quite the racket.



HIC ET NUNC are a tad more sophisticated bordering on contemporary. Their (fifth!?) album, "Burn Fat Old Sun" is produced by Bambi's collaborator and Walkabout, Chris Eckman. Theirs is a soulful maelstrom that burns (no pun or owt else intended) with a sinewy brightness constructed from many shards of popular music history. It's a Died Pretty-ish intensity that burns to bond the tracks. This stuff could really travel. A record like this could start the bush telegraph buzzing with "Llubljana is the new Seattle" type bollocks. The title track channels Joy Division through Radio Birdman to arrive at a destination that our airwaves could use right about now. "Innstant Self Knowledge" (it has two 'n's' on the jacket) is positively Roy Wood-like. BFOS is a really excellent album that deserves a wide audience.