Let me do this in my best vintage Dan Aykroyd from SNL voice.
Do YOU need more excitement in your life? A little PICK ME UP in these weird times? The "WEIRD AND DIRTY MUSIC" you never knew you needed? Look no further than Wet Cassette’s new compilation album THE COMP VOLUME 1! Here are 20 tracks, 20 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED TRACKS, ranging across the board from noise to punk to drone and beyond! HIGH ENERGY! CRAZINESS! Many of these musicians came together as one-offs SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS RELEASE! You’ll also hear bands you WILL SOON HEAR ON WET CASSETTE RELEASES and bands you MAY BE FAMILIAR WITH! And just when you thought that was all, the compilation will throw in FABULOUSLY DEMENTED SONG TITLES and weird sound samples to FASCINATE and AMUSE!
Yeah, I took a speech and drama class in high school and did all the ad type of stuff (non-union) I was assigned in Dan Aykroyd voice/presentation. Seriously, we’re highlighting this new Wet Cassette compilation with the premiere of five tracks with mini-reviews below. Dig it.
1
Sunday Rathskeller - "Born From a Wish"
Cool sound samples and ominous atmosphere. I’m instantly drawn into this weird world. And then this omnipotent voice. At under two minutes, this track flies by, a fleeting glimpse of a skeezy reality. “Do I look like your girlfriend?” What is going on here? This recalls some of the most uncomfortable listening elements of industrial music of yesteryear. Is it bad that I enjoy it?
2
The Future Faux Kaufs - "Nature Nurture Network"
Noisy and rhythmic with a passive-aggressive-sounding female vocal. Can’t argue. We have been dealing with a lot of reckonings in recent times. This reminds me of something I might hear from (the IMHO criminally underrated) Pain Teens. Nature/Nurture. An interesting topic for these days; so many connotations. Until the computer simulation theory is proven, I’m guessing it will continue.
3
Gaba Ghoul - "Burial Gown"
Gaba Ghoul plays an understated doom metal sound with some garage-level fuzz. This new track “Burial Gown” has a simple drum track and layered riffs that remind me of Aphex Twin’s “Windowlicker.” The band focuses on horror movie aesthetics and bleak satanic themes and this song continues that trend. Be sure to check out their debut single Gaba Ghoul.
4
The Tux - "Proper Guy Hardcore"
This track boasts an oddly sludgy guitar tone matched with high-pitched hardcore vocals. It’s played claustrophobically close and beckons you in with handfuls of gang vocals and a beat-switching breakdown before dropping off around the one-minute mark. I can’t tell if this is supposed to be mocking youth crew bands -- I picture it would be making fun of the preppy bros who somehow latch onto the hardcore scene. But that might be due to some of the lyrics sounding like they're about wearing suits and doing blow.
5
Drowned Out - "Can’t Face It"
Distant, brooding post-rock behind spoken word vocals that feels a little like an early Deep Elm imitation. The lyrics might strike as trite or overly vague, but they still reflect the despair and monotony that anyone can relate to in 2021 -- “nothing to look forward to, nothing coming ahead / it was always the same every morning.” The spacey second guitar that kicks in for the back part of the song is almost Explosions in the Sky-esque. Wet Cassettes might be built on the “weird and dirty,” but they have some other tricks up their sleeve as well.
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The Comp Vol. 1 is out on March 26th via Wet Cassettes. This fun release can be preordered (including in a limited edition cassette) here.
