Killer Kin – “Bad, Bad Minds!”
There was a time when punk didn’t smell too nice. When it was dangerous to the touch like a live electrical wire. A time, like at the early days at The Rat, it involved people being passed out in front of huge musical speakers while the music blared, where you knew, it wasn’t alcohol that caused this- but a special ingredient.
During those early days, there was a time when I’d look around the room and wondered how many of these people I would see next weekend. And yes, there was a time when I expected myself, to maybe not be there next weekend, as well.
I’m still amazed that I’m still here, and when I mentioned to Andy, recently, if he thought maybe only a half of the people we stood shoulder to shoulder at shows are still around, his reply was, “Oh, no- much less than that.”
But I thought where I was standing was the best place to be and I still believe that. And I still stand at a different club, but still at punk shows. And though, I often feel like I’m a ghost, I appreciate it more, I enjoy it more now.
Editors note: So Slimedog, what the hell does this have to do with this review?
Well, Killer Kin harks back to the bad, old days in their style. I hear early rock’n’roll and rockabilly, sixties garage, seventies punnk- I hear The Cramps, the New York Dolls, Gun Club, Iggy & The Stooges. It’s not a blatant cop, more like, Killer Kin is taking up all the great ingredients from these bands and cooking up a new recipe of musical nourishment.
And my ears are enjoying the food which they’re devouring insatiably.
It’s raw and spicy to my taste but also, palatable and inviting to my palate.
Let’s sample their wares:
Starting with a splash of echoing, tremelo-ing guitar that conjures up to me, walking into the ghost of Link Wray. “Bad, Bad Mind” blasts forth with high-pitched screams and a thunderin’ rock’n’roll beat. And when the vocals barge in, it suggests- the great, rockabilly band The Johnny Burnette Trio on bad acid. “I got a bad, bad mind.” But is this a bad acid trip? No way! This song has the best elements of rockin’ rockabilly, sixties garage and early punk all rolled up into one shot of adrenaline up your cordial spine. This song is energetic, frantic, emotional, crazy and tosses Johnny Thunders like licks into the mix like sugar into the batter. I got a bad, bad mind also, obviously. But my ears are good and they tell me this is a great, great tune.
“Bon Vivant” which means- “A person who enjoys a a sociable and luxurious lifestyle,”- which I, undoubtedly, do. “Fine wine, rich girls- I’m a bon vivant.” Lotsa lo-fi, bass-less vibe in this bluesy song that accelerates in speed as the vocals move into a near hysterical tone. This tune suggests an early Iggy & The Stooges bootleg and how awesome is that? This song goes wild towards the end with vocals so expressive and emotional to recall Iggy Pop in his prime. And I don’t believe there’s any praise higher than that.
“Killer is King” struts out with a garage/punk/rockabilly groove with echo and reverberation flying. But soon the jet packs are lighted and we’re speeding ahead into punk/hardcore land. “Killer is king. Yeah, yeah, yeah.” This song switches back in between two awesome parts. But never loses the intensity, the passion, the wild, rockin, abandon that exists in the core, in the heart of this great song.
This band is more aligned with fifties rock’n’roll, garage rock and perhaps, even current lo-fi bands than punk.
But I know all the great sources they’re drawing upon, and a lot of it is what they now call proto-punk, and is music that led up to the punk revolution.
And that’s where punk was birthed, where it was immaculately conceived.
And I could tell you that this band came highly recommended from Jeffrey, who is a member of The Lost Riots and The Ratz, two of my favorite bands, both from Connecticut, just like this band.
And I could tell you, that I totally agree with him- this is one of the best new bands around. This is pure rock’n’roll, pure excitement, pure passion and fun. And if you think this isn’t punk then I would point out, I just listed all the main ingredients of punk rocks’ recipe.
My ears can’t get enough of this stuff. It’s almost as bad as how my mouth gets with beer.
Well, nothing matches that extreme.
But sometimes I’ve found that bad, bad minds produce good, good music.
And I believe that is, certainly the case here.
(Slimedog)
