Go Go Go Airheart
Love My Life… Hate My Friends
Gold Standard
Wowzers! The folks at GSL sure do put out some weird stuff, and this Go Go Go Airheart record is no exception. I guess what makes the label’s releases “weird” is that they defy easy categorization, and can’t be compared to many other bands. C’est la vie…
Go Go Go Airheart are kind of like a cross between early 1980s Sonic Youth, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and The Make Up. There’s lots of feedback throughout Love My Life… Hate My Friends, just as there are plenty of hot, butt-shakin’ beats. The vocalist sounds very much like Ian Svenonius (Nation of Ulysses), and he’s just as spunky and sassy. The guitars are overwhelmed by the vocals and drums, so I guess this could eek its way into the “garage” classification, but again, that wouldn’t really be all that accurate.
What is for sure is that the recording production is very lo-fi, and the songs rarely seem to have a point. It sounds as if a bunch of friends who just like to rock out decided one day to make a record. The Confusion is Sex-era Sonic Youth similarities are strewn throughout the music, and even bleed onto the album’s cover artwork (compare the two covers… you’ll see what I mean). I can’t really get into this; it lacks focus and I quickly get bored. But I’m guessing that fans of the more experimental side of life will eat this one up.
PS – this is a reissue of the original pressing, from 1998.
Gold Standard Laboratories: http://www.goldstandardlabs.com/