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Outstanding new wave EP from rural Missouri. The world is not ready. Screen printed sleeves. LR #61
Our take: Debut 3-songer from this project out of rural Missouri. This is synth-punk with an emphasis on synth... I would say that this record is completely devoid of guitars except for the fact that there are some funny little unison bends on "Nog Bag," which really cracks me up... I like imagining that the Wad have a guitarist that can only do unison bends and not play any other notes or chords. That probably isn't the case and it might not even be a guitar making those noises, but whatever gives you a little joy in this world, y'know? Anyway, the combination of aggressive, punk-influenced synth playing and fast and heavy live drums means that this has a very Screamers-esque feel, which is apparent not only in the way that the songs are arranged, but also in how they're written. The vocals are aggressively spit out and choruses tend to hang around caustic chants... the b-side, "Atomic," is the perfect example, and if the vocals were a little lower in register and more gravelly this could easily pass for an unreleased Screamers tune (though I might like it even more if it were a cover of the underrated Blondie track from Eat to the Beat). Like a lot of the stuff on Lumpy Records, there's a certain tossed-off, slightly inconsequential feel to this that you'll hate if you're super self-serious about your punk, but that you'll love if all you want from a punk record is three aggressive, catchy as hell tracks. Lord knows you get them here.