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Our take: The Pig Kiss’d is the second LP from Austin, Texas’s Chronophage, who have been developing a buzz in the punk underground over the past few years. I liked everything I’ve heard from them, but this week The Pig Kiss’d really hit me. The first few times I played it, I had it on in the background while I was working and it wasn’t doing much for me, but once I gave it an attentive listen it clicked and I think I’ve played it 6 or 7 times in the past 24 hours. The sound on The Pig Kiss’d is a logical progression from their earlier material. Stylistically this is still rough, ramshackle, and arty pop music, but across each release (particularly since they’ve made the jump to vinyl), Chronophage has grown more refined and more eclectic. As before, I’m reminded of touchstones like the Swell Maps and the Fall, but what separates Chronophage from other bands in this vein is that they sound so American. If you look at a band like the Shifters or even early Pavement, there’s an undercurrent of anglophilia, but Chronophage sound like they’ve listened to a lot of Neil Young, Laurel Canyon singer-songwriters, and 70s album-oriented rock. Those influences (if they are influences) get chopped and screwed and come out weird, but it feels to me like they’re there, and they bump up against the artier approach I mentioned in interesting ways. The songs are cool, the production and arrangements are beautiful, and the overall approach is unique, so if this style of arty underground pop interests you, Chronophage should be on your radar.