Juicehead
The Devil Made Me Do It
Misfits
If the cover art on Juicehead’s 2007 debut The Devil Made Me Do It isn’t an indication of what lies ahead, then I don’t know what else could be a prelude to this crass onslaught of irreverently thoughtful punchy punk rock from the Chicago trio. It’s slimy, offensive, and downright distasteful to say the least. Then again, that’s probably what they were hoping for. But don’t think I’m ragging on them completely. Juicehead does do a nice job of speaking their minds on corporate takeovers, relational fallout, and peer responsibility, all of which are excellent fodder for the lyrical and sonic underbelly of the mucky three-chord guitar romps and speedy, sloppy-fun drumming and rubber-band bass. Not really anything new musically, per se, with melodic nods to Agent Orange and touring mates the Misfits, but they definitely have something to say about the world (“Weapons of Mass Destruction,” “Internal Bleeding,” “Covered in Blood”), even if they do so with an over-the-top brutal satire that’s hard to separate from most of the straight-ahead scab-gnawing punk rock that populated The Devil. They’re either really creative (“Break of Day”), or really not (bad interlude skits). You can’t blame everything on the Prince of Darkness, but look for a new album set to release later this year.
Misfits Records: http://www.misfitsrecords.com
