reviews
Marijuanal
“Stoned Punk”
Marijuanal formed in 2013: the band
plays a mix of punk, hardcore, metal, alternative, indie rock,
j-rock. Debut album
is called Stoned
Punk, mixed and mastered in New York
by Bob Davodian
(among his works
Randall Flag, Divine
Rapture). Lp starts from 1984, title that
reminds of Orwell (but also of Van Halen):
the song imports immediately all values of
a very fast and consistent punk. No Pussies at the Skatepark combines punk ideas with the desire to make inroads into the
youth culture. Alone tries to shift the focus
elsewhere with some initial piano chord,
but it is a joke: the light-hearted tone returns and the tune sounds punk-hardcore
right away. Blood (Nukezone) lowers the
rate to metal/stoner levels. Lp runs again
with Brothers, and it runs a lot: the attitude is aggressive, but the punk inspiration
in this case is the American one. Strung
Out proposes a different behavior, with a
less obsessive drumming. Guitar instead
takes command in the introduction of Pain
(Mope), at least until the drums decide to
go crazy. The song is curious and surprising and also provides a soft acoustic guitar interlude. Blotter turns to some extreme sounding, indeed closer to an indie/
alternative rock attitude dark and intense.
At the end of the record there is Double
Drop, with higher speeds and a more direct approach. Never underestimate the
strength of Marijuanal: if they can stay on
the path they might offer some good surprises.
Moon Ra & Nicola
Corti: “E.S.P.”
An entire record devoted to sleep: ESP is
the work that two multi-instrumentalists experimental Moon Ra (also known
by other monikers, such as Marie and
The Rose) and Nicola Corti have build,
in a flood of acoustic, synthetic, effected
sounds. The first track is Intro-Dormiveglia, hypnagogic rhythm that sta