Cows
Cunning Stunts

Do you know the Cows? They are a band from Minneapolis. Their genre is "wacky extreme hardcore clownish with a trumpet non-melodic but catchy and absolutely unconventional". They might seem out of their minds, but... they truly are, I assure you!

During performances, they did absurd things, like holding a ketchup-covered hot-dog in a tuba (with the sauce dripping on their face) to eat it halfway through the concert; but let’s talk about the album.

"Cunning Stunts" is considered by everyone to be their masterpiece, and with good reasons. The music is violent, like Bad Brains' Rock For Light but nastier and a bit less fast. Despite having a hardcore nature, it’s really fun, especially because it’s played in an original way: just think of the presence of the trumpet (which may seem like a stupid gimmick, but the effect is amazing); in one of the most epic tracks (Mr. Cancelled), a harmonica even makes an appearance!
To fall in love with this album, you only need to listen to the beginning of the first track (Heave Ho): the cry of a newborn, the guitar and trumpet shyly introduce themselves, then suddenly a guttural scream and the song kicks off at full speed under the guidance of the crazy trumpet. After that, the tracks follow one another without a drop in tone, managing to entertain the listener until the very end.

An intentionally not serious album, but truly engaging and interesting. Certainly worthy of competing with the greatest hardcore records.