New(ish) Records Review #1
Reviews of Infective “1984 is now” EP plus the latest Ugly Pop Records releases (UP073-UP075)
I suppose it is important to point out that 2024 marks the year of me purchasing new records again, that is after taking a hiatus for many years, mainly due to financial constraints. I will always prefer the old stuff, but in the end I came to the realization that there really are many brilliant new(er) bands out there releasing records and why should I miss out on all the action. Having started Barstool Revolution I now also have an outlet to review some of those records, so keep coming back for more current releases if that is what you are interested in. With today’s releases from Switzerland and Canada I thought it would be a good idea to reach out to Infective in Switzerland, and to Simon of Ugly Pop in Toronto, Canada as I do know the people in person, hence these reviews have a more personal touch and include a few questions I have mailed out to them.
Label: Self-Released; Year: 2024; Format: Vinyl EP
Infective hail from Winterthur in Switzerland, a mid-sized city Northeast of Zurich with a fairly rich local punk rock history. Infective started out of the ashes of glam—punk act Tasty Geezers back in 2017 and “1984 is now” is their first release. I know Shalel and Andy in the band quite well hence I sent off an e-mail to Shalel to learn more about the release and the band’s relatively young history.
When it comes to a steady line-up Shalel explained that after several line-up changes over the years the quartet is now happy how things are working out. In 2022 the band recorded some tracks for a Demo-CDR and since then Infective have been supporting acts such as The Kids, Outcasts or Total Chaos amongst others for their Swiss shows. Shalel further expands on the idea of starting Infective:
“From the get go the idea has always been to play abrasive and uncompromising punk rock influenced by acts from the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. Further to that we don’t want to hold back when it comes to our lyrics and keep it honest and straight forward. ”
Above shared “Winti Chaos City” is one of the four tracks to be found on the excellent EP and deals with changes in society at large as well as people closer to home in their hometown:
“I don’t want to get too carried away when it comes to the lyrics for “Winti Chaos City” but unfortunately it is true that many friends and people close to us from the squatter scene have had fall-outs over silly rules they would like to impose on all of us, such as how to correctly pogo dance to give you an example. Instead of pulling together it seems that the scene has grown apart to the point where some people no longer talk to one another, which is a shame. On top of that Winterthur with its close proximity to Zurich is increasingly gentrifying and becoming less and less affordable. As a result of that it has become nearly impossible to organize underground shows due to the lack of venues and squats which used to be around in the past. ”
“I am from Zurich and almost twenty years older than the rest in the band. Over the years I have seen these problems playing out over and over so I guess we’ll survive. Doesn’t mean I feel good about it though. ”
The four tracks on the EP remind me of bands from Northern Ireland such as the Outcasts or Rudi as well as some more melodic UK82 acts such as Infa-Riot or Chron Gen. Shalel and Andy certainly don’t disagree:
“The main influences I am bringing in are bands such as the Enemy, Menace, One Way System or the Defects from the UK, as well as pioneering US acts such as the Electric Eels or Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers. We also love early Swiss punk band Crazy from Lucerne very much and count them as one of our main influences. ”
“Everything I have grown up with since the ‘80s I would count as the influences I am bringing in and those include bands like AC/DC, Sex Pistols, Motorhead, Slime, Stiff Little Fingers, Ramones, UK Subs and many others. ”
The 4-Track EP shines not only musically but also aesthetically harking back to releases of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s with everything being in black and white and with song titles such as “1984 is now” suggesting that the world has indeed not gotten any better since those days. In addition to Shalel’s and Andy’s take on that I was also wondering whether punk rock holds any meaning for young people in Switzerland in 2024?
“George Orwell’s ‘Nineteen Eighty Four’ is my favorite book and I read it for the first time when I was fifteen years old. Unfortunately a lot from the book has become reality and we as individuals have become replaceable the minute we don’t go along with what’s expected from us. The surveillance state is taking our society in a very dangerous direction and the rise of the internet worldwide has not brought the advancements we were promised, but quite the opposite. On a positive note I feel like since the end of the pandemic there has been an increase of younger people in the punk scene and underground shows are happening weekly in Zurich and at one location in Winterthur as well, which gives me personally hope. ”
“The world has truly not become a better place despite many technical advancements. I may sound more pessimistic when it comes to punk rock’s influence on young people and really don’t think it matters at all. But there is always hope, or so they say...”
Back in 2019 Simon of Ugly Pop Records in Toronto, Canada announced that the label has run its course and he does not plan on releasing any records anymore. Fast forward to 2024 and luckily things have changed and as we speak there are four new releases out. I have ordered the initial three immediately and have also reached out to Simon to give us a take on Ugly Pop 073 through 075 as well as answering some general questions, such as what motivated him to pick up the label again?
I was really burned out on a lot of realities of the modern ‘vinyl’ era, and I guess I still am, but we all need some kind of creative outlet. As a music nut with no musical talent whatsoever, doing a label is one obvious alternative. I often say that ‘taste is the talent of the talentless’ should be—or is-- Ugly Pop’s slogan. I have a little more financial stability now than I ever did before, so I can resign myself to releasing great records simply for the satisfaction of doing so, and not having to worry about making every penny back.
Label: Ugly Pop Records (UP-073); Year: 2024; Format: 7” Single
First of the batch are the Ward, a short lived group that recorded some songs back in 2011. The New Dykes and Mike, Mikey, Michael are outstanding pop punk numbers with plenty of hooks, melodies and a powerful female voice. And with pop punk I certainly don’t mean anything MTV-friendly but rather songs that are equally influenced by later stage Husker Du, HDQ or Leatherface to name a few. And trust me I am the pickiest of all people when it comes to pop punk as my ears are generally speaking not very tolerant to said genre, but I can definitely see why Simon decided to release this after the band has vanished years ago:
I didn’t even hear the Ward when they were around in 2011, but the singer was later in Victim Party, sharing vocals with her then-husband Colin. I had released a record by Colin’s previous group Marilyn’s Vitamins very early in the label’s history, so was happy to release the Victim Party 12”, and learned of the Ward demo through that. I must have listened to it a thousand times since, and really wanted to get it on vinyl. When the label started up again, it was on top of my list.
Convince yourself but hurry up as this is a really small run hence head over to the Ward’s bandcamp and get a taste of what you could be missing out on.
Label: Ugly Pop Records (UP-074); Year: 2024; Format: 7” Single
All right, next up are Ichi-Bons, apparently a very happening three-piece from Toronto, and with good reason. Get Away is a superb ‘60s influenced garage rock smasher that will instantly get you out of your armchair to dance uncontrollably on your grandma’s old carpet. Side B is an instant hit as well with the three gentlemen with seemingly meticulous taste in music delivering a great cover of an obscure '65 instrumental by Jack & The Ripper Z called Heart Attack. Wild, Primitive Rock’N’Roll at its very best me thinks, and so does Simon…:
Ichi Bons have also been around for a while. Although a Toronto group, two of them are Japanese guys who live in Canada; bassist Hideki owns the Black Dice, probably my favorite bar in Toronto. I’d been friendly with Paddy, their drummer, and we had loosely discussed doing a single on Ugly Pop for years. Earlier this year, that idea began to take more concrete shape, and I was down. They’re the best group in the city, superb both live and on record. This single was recorded at Toe Rag in London last year, and while they’re most often called rockabilly, this one’s a pretty wild ’66-style garage punk ripper a la Back From the Grave.
Wanting to find out about Simon’s take on the so called vinyl boom of recent years I was particularly interested to hear from him how a small DIY operation such as Ugly Pop fits into that story line and how the costs involved in releasing records have risen compared to a few years ago:
I could talk your ears about this in person, but no time to type it all out right now. Suffice to say that the cost of pressing records, which is even worse due to the tiny pressing sizes, and perhaps worst of all the cost of shipping, has made everything much more difficult than it ever was before. It’s counter-intuitive, but even as mainstream record sales grow year after year, hardcore punk sales shrink and shrink. I did 200 copies of a fantastic record last month, and submitted two more 200-run singles last night. That’s pure labour of love stuff. Distribution has largely collapsed inside Canada, and postage costs make it a considerable challenge beyond anything labels in the US or Europe need to deal with.
Label: Ugly Pop Records (UP-075); Year: 2024; Format: 7” EP
Last one of the current batch are Golden Shitters from Hamilton, just outside Toronto. They are the perfect soundtrack to the end of a day with four fast, furious yet melodic punk rock songs that could have been recorded decades ago but at the same time have that sort of distinct more modern sound to them with a thicker sound reminding us all that simple and somewhat moronic punk rock is still well alive, which I am ever so grateful for, and so should you according to Simon:
I had previously done a 12” for guitarist Matt’s old group Plastic Heads. They released their own 12” last year, and I was an instant fan. Just Punk Rock, fast and raw with hooks, soul, and some ripping guitar flash. I hear early Ramones and the Spits. Very easy to enjoy, so once I had committed to doing the Ichi Bons and Ward 45s, they were an obvious next choice. They have an LP coming out before long on another Canadian label, and they’re going to Europe in the fall, too.
Last but not least, what are the future plans for Ugly Pop, and will you do reissues again as well or concentrate mainly on interesting current acts from Toronto?
I have a few things planned, all various kinds of basic punk/hardcore/garage rock in the purist sense, mostly singles but a few 12”s too. The Cult Crime 45 actually comes out tomorrow (is out now) — killer new Toronto ‘hardcore rock’n’roll’ that sounds like 1981 to me,somewhere between Posh Boy and No Future. I’m always open to reissues (or, better yet, releases of previously unheard music), but it has to be actually worth doing. The market has really been weakened by unnecessary new editions of mediocre records that only got done because someone wanted get into doing reissues.
No doubt there’ll be more Ugly Pop releases reviewed in the not so distant future, but in the meantime check out Ugly Pop’s current catalog!
