Pissed Jeans
King Of Jeans

Years ago, I visited my favorite music shop and almost casually stumbled upon an album titled "Do Dallas." Although I was aware of Albini's work, I knew absolutely nothing about these Mclusky. As I listened, my heart started to pound, following the powerful beats emanating from that disc which, in half an hour, best synthesized the brashness and explosive force of rock, updating the early '90s noise formula with shaky harmonies dangerously teetering between hallucination and madness.

The magic of encountering an album with a similar impact rarely happens again, but this "King Of Jeans" dangerously comes close (please read these two words carefully before you slaughter me). I mention Mclusky because the Pissed Jeans certainly have points in common with the Cardiff band: a visceral love for Amphetamine Reptile productions, repeated listening to The Jesus Lizard, a production that highlights the rhythm section and the incredibly distorted guitar.

However, there are substantial differences between the two bands. Pissed Jeans don’t aim to evolve towards more contemporary solutions; instead, they immerse themselves completely in a grunge punk backdrop to Matt Korvette’s DavidYowian proclamations.

If in the '80s the Flipper didn't particularly enjoy themselves in San Francisco, the 2000-transposed equivalent can be traced back to that Allentown from which this quartet hails.

Let's take the classic rock trinity, namely guitar-bass-drums. Then let's try to teach these disgruntled lads the discography of The Jesus Lizard, some Black Flag stuff (like "My War" onwards), a few tracks from "In Utero," and a sprinkle of "Generic Flipper." Mix it all up and lock the group in a room for a few days, encouraging them to compose as many tracks as possible by promising them a good contract under Sub Pop.

The result will not deviate much from "King Of Jeans," the follow-up to the brilliant "Hope For Men." Do you feel like yelling like a demon while trying to throw the television out of the window? Do it while listening to "False Jesii Part 2". Can't remember the onslaughts of The Germs because it’s been a while since you replayed their album? "Dream Smothered" might refresh your memory. How much do you miss the angrier Nirvana? If the answer is not much, screw you. If it's a lot, with "Human Upskirt", "Lip Ring", and "Dominate Yourself", you’ll miss them even more. Do you like losing yourself in Melvins-esque claustrophobic sounds? With "Spent" you can start a new catharsis. The rest of the album maintains excellent levels, without any drop in tension and especially without a minute of anything that could even vaguely approach pop.

Some of you might point out how derivative they are, others might consider this album a step back compared to the previous one, and still others might argue they don't deviate from a genre that offered much more over ten years ago. As for me, this album is well-made, excellently produced and mad enough to thrill me. Subjectively, I raise the score: 4.5, well done, well done.