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Trashcan Darlings |
 Frequent
Sleazegrinder collaborators (Gigs From Hell, Cock n’ Roll)
and certified loons, Norwegian glam-slammers the Trashcan Darlings
return with a 4 song, break-the bank EP that is pink and pulsating in just
about every sense. First off, it’s literally hot pink, inside and
out, with strangely compelling Scandi-dandy group photos on the front and
back. Look close, and ya might notice that the whole design is a nifty
homage to spiritual forebears Hanoi Rocks' seminal “Back to
Mystery City” album. Don’t look all that close, and you’ll
think you’ve stumbled upon a bizarre gang of lipstick-eating weirdos from
Planet Freakout. Both observances are quite correct. Inside, you’ll find 4
juicy slabs of the Darlings’ trademark candy-coated suicide
glam-punk, filled with larger than life hooks, sweetly melodic guitars,
and crazed, death-obsessed lyrics. Both opener “Peggy Sue is Dead”
and “I Won’t Pay the Price” are deadringers for the hooky,
pop-fried punk that Indiana drunk n’ rollers Sloppy Seconds used to
play – “Peggy Sue” even shares the same celebrity-death fetish as
Sloppy’s classic “Someone Else’s Pills” – and they just
rock, man, perfectly apocalyptic summertime hate songs. The oddly named “(Never
Enough) You’re Too Much” starts off with a Tyla-style bit of
glammy spoken-word poetry (somethin’ about chicks and drink, I think),
before launching into a positively joyous sounding, Dolls-y raunch
n’ roller. This one is probably the most rousing I’ve ever heard these
fancy sourpusses get, and it’s a scorcher. Closer “Electric Vampires”
is a creepy, off-kilter Manic Street Preachers/New Model Army
(!) kinda glam-drone track, jagged, distant, and decidedly weird.
Great stuff, all of it, and although the Darlings are leaning
ever-closer in a 70’s arena rock direction ( 3 of the 4 tracks here are
over 4 minutes long), ya just can’t smear the lipstick off of their ragged
mugs, no matter how many mustache solos ya throw in. If you dig your
sleaze sprinkled with a little sugar and whole LOTTA arsenic, then
do no hesitate to fish this one outta the nearest Trashcan, darlin’.
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-Sleazegrinder |