Charity records are always a tough breed to review; on the one hand you don't want to say anything bad because they are for a good cause and you have to respect that. On the other hand though, most are a big pile of shite that the majority of people with taste ignore with intent. So it was with some trepidation that I decided to tackle this split EP from Boxcar Satan and The Graves Brothers Deluxe in aid of mental health charities around the Gulf Coast.
Goodness knows why I was worried though - both bands come up with some dirty blues punk dirge mess that is neither big nor clever, and I love it! Boxcar Satan butcher "High Water Everywhere" by Charley Patton in the most glorious of ways that somehow manages to sound even more angry and aggressive than the original without ever straying to far from it.
The Graves Brothers Deluxe follows with their cover of Boxcar Satan's "Shoot Down the Sun" and again create a great song to enjoy. However their cover of Huey "Piano" Smith's "Don't You Just Know It" steals the show, not hard when covering such a great song, granted, but sounding like how I imagine every dirty south party should it just hits all the right notes and seems like the perfect good time record.
Finishing up is Boxcar Satan's take on "Legs Rub Together," starting nice and gently before kicking it into overdrive and making a sludgy, angry, bluesy noise that should perk the interest of anyone that likes their punk rock dirty.
So, all in all a good job for everyone involved. Some money is raised for charity and some darn good songs that come wrapped in some rather nice looking artwork were produced. As a result the customer won't feel like they've bought a terrible product just to appease some sort of guilt over not giving enough to charity. If only all charity records could tick these boxes.
