Well, face facts, we're slap bang in the middle of a blimmin' heatwave and that might seem like a strange time to reach for The Thermals but then if you haven't guessed by now I'm a pretty perverse kinda guy.
They're described as something of a supergroup over at Pitchfork but given that I've never heard of any of their former bands that seems to be stretching the concept of a supergroup even thinner than a zapata 'tache. Worse still it's horribly misleading - if supergroups make you think of prog-rock fretwankery, that's the exact opposite of what you'll find on album More Parts Per Million (out now on Sub-Pop Records).
This was apparently recorded in a basement and what's more it sounds like it - the singer's sub-Mark E Smith hectoring vocals on a free-styling collision course with fuzzy, distorted guitars and the 13 tracks clocking up just 27 minutes. First song 'It's Trivia' kicks off in demented, tuneful style and the subsequent tracks (while having distinct melodies) are essentially variations on the same sledgehammer theme, making for a claustrophobic and exhausting listening experience for such a short album.
More Parts Per Million may borrow elements from the garage-rawk and No Wave movements but in fact The Thermals belong in an insular, vacuum-sealed universe of their own making: they make (non)sense on their own terms. It's not for all tastes and I'm probably too old to be going ga-ga over a record that is the aural equivalent of being repeatedly hit over the head with a baseball bat, but for me The Thermals have succeeded in delivering hot new product.
Meanwhile, here's a few quick links to close up today's business -
Heatwave causes UK rail disruption. Is there a weather condition known to man that doesn't these days?
In happier news Meg Ryan, 41, gets naked in Jane Campion's erotic thriller The Dark Cut. The film, due out in the UK in November, also stars Jennifer Jason Leigh and let's hope JJ gets a more prominent role than her pitifully brief turn in The Road To Perdition.
Mike The Tribbled Diva picks his top 30 singles of the year so far.
Don Estelle obit - 'the comic actor who became an unlikely pop star'.
And finally...Carrot Rope because I'm always a sucker for weblogs named after Pavement songs.
Now sod this for a game of uniformed murderers 'cos Showgirls is on Channel 4 at 10pm, and don't pretend you won't be watching the ubertrash classic either...
They're described as something of a supergroup over at Pitchfork but given that I've never heard of any of their former bands that seems to be stretching the concept of a supergroup even thinner than a zapata 'tache. Worse still it's horribly misleading - if supergroups make you think of prog-rock fretwankery, that's the exact opposite of what you'll find on album More Parts Per Million (out now on Sub-Pop Records).
This was apparently recorded in a basement and what's more it sounds like it - the singer's sub-Mark E Smith hectoring vocals on a free-styling collision course with fuzzy, distorted guitars and the 13 tracks clocking up just 27 minutes. First song 'It's Trivia' kicks off in demented, tuneful style and the subsequent tracks (while having distinct melodies) are essentially variations on the same sledgehammer theme, making for a claustrophobic and exhausting listening experience for such a short album.
More Parts Per Million may borrow elements from the garage-rawk and No Wave movements but in fact The Thermals belong in an insular, vacuum-sealed universe of their own making: they make (non)sense on their own terms. It's not for all tastes and I'm probably too old to be going ga-ga over a record that is the aural equivalent of being repeatedly hit over the head with a baseball bat, but for me The Thermals have succeeded in delivering hot new product.
Meanwhile, here's a few quick links to close up today's business -
Heatwave causes UK rail disruption. Is there a weather condition known to man that doesn't these days?
In happier news Meg Ryan, 41, gets naked in Jane Campion's erotic thriller The Dark Cut. The film, due out in the UK in November, also stars Jennifer Jason Leigh and let's hope JJ gets a more prominent role than her pitifully brief turn in The Road To Perdition.
Mike The Tribbled Diva picks his top 30 singles of the year so far.
Don Estelle obit - 'the comic actor who became an unlikely pop star'.
And finally...Carrot Rope because I'm always a sucker for weblogs named after Pavement songs.
Now sod this for a game of uniformed murderers 'cos Showgirls is on Channel 4 at 10pm, and don't pretend you won't be watching the ubertrash classic either...
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