So what if the artwork for Thundercrack's debut album is half
fluorescent orange and half bright purple, with a jagged lightning
bolt dividing the two halves? So the photo of the band was altered to
have a heavily contrasted, near-animated look. And, sure, the lead
holds a square-shaped, checkered guitar while the other two band
members wear rectangular-shaped shades.
Judge not lest ye be judged. Don't judge a book by its cover. One of
those clichés (or are they hard truths from the Book o' Life?)
will do, anyway. 'Cause if one did judge this album by its cover, one
might expect the Thundercrack guys to have absurd hairdos, wear
skinny ties and play '80s new wave (or is it no wave? One of 'em,
anyhoo).
And such is not the case. These three fellows — lead
singer/guitarist/organist Nick Normal, drummer/organist Jay Automatic
and guitarist/pianist Stanley Roadrunner — make
fuzzed-out-all-the-way-through, stomping and yelping, often
synth-driven garage rock. Sure, most garage-rockers have a little
distortion and fuzz here and there, but Thundercrack use so much of
it, their sound wouldn't be their sound without it. It's easy to find
the spirit of The Stooges in their roughed-up, gritty and sometimes
screeching tunes. And in the fashion of '60s garage, their songs
often incorporate party-time rhythms you can shake your booty to.
Led by echoing electrified sneer-singing that recalls the Butthole
Surfers, "ES 125" rides on a catchy beat, tambourine slaps and a
dirty guitar riff. "Get My Money Back" is probably the most
pissed-off, grating and indecipherable track, while the bluesy
"Fallin' of the Log" has deep hand-clap fed rhythm and danceable,
low, thumping beats. "Cheap Cosmetic" does start out with an '80s
synthesizer robotic whine (the synthesizer infiltrates intermittently
throughout), but a haunting guitar line and rock 'n' roll vocals bust
in, reminding you that this is not a retro act but a classic one.
End note: I've nothing against new wave or no wave. And Thundercrack
do make use of nifty synthesizer noises, so I'm well aware of the
holes in my case (not to mention the checkers) — just wanted to
make it clear the band's not lookin' to bring that combo of orange
and purple back in style.
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