Arab on Radar
Queen Hygiene II / Rough Day At The Orifice
Three.One.G
Arab on Radar recently announced they were breaking up, but 2003 still proves to be a pretty good year for fans of the band. First we got The Stolen Singles, a great collection of the band’s singles and compilation tracks. And now we get this one-disc re-release of the band’s first two hard-to-find albums. The spastic Providence, RI band formed back in 1997, and debuted with Queen Hygiene II that same year. A brief, punctuated and tightly energetic affair, this established all the trademarks of the Arab on Radar sound: angular arrangements, a spastic hardcore approach and some extremely funny (and thought-provoking) gender-bending lyrics.
By 1999, Arab on Radar had become a semi-legendary live band on the spazzcore scene, and one of the definite acts in the new wave of hardcore punk. They were equal parts Captain Beefheart and Black Flag, but with an aesthetic and angularity all their own. A Rough Day At The Orifice is a darker, even more twisted and perverted affair than the debut album. This album is more difficult to approach at first listening, but is ultimately an even more rewarding affair than their already stunning debut. Showing a band that has honed their unique musicianship and songwriting close to perfection, Rough Day At The Orifice demonstrates just why Arab on Radar is regarded as one of the defining bands among the new breed of hardcore weirdness.
Three.One.G: http://www.threeoneg.com/
