The Doldrums – Freakin’ me out!
Songs are a lot like people. Either they tell you the truth immediately, or they spend a really long time delivering a story that you won’t believe anyway. Now that you know, perhaps, you’ll have an easier time deciding which is which.
That’s part of the appeal of punk rock. It allows you to make quick decisions. It lets you hear a lot of truthful music in a short space of time. And, in the case of The Doldrums, you’ll know pretty quickly whether they’re telling the truth, and whether you care.
Most other styles of music won’t let you know as quickly. They’ll wrap the songs up in solos, elaborate arrangements, and cryptic lyrics. When that doesn’t work, they’ll throw in a few dance moves for good measure. They’ll do all of that, in fact, before letting you know that, in fact, they weren’t trying to say anything to begin with.
The Doldrums play fast, direct, catchy punk music. But they’ve got a point. They’re aching and working hard to stop the pain. “Freakin’ Me Out!” may sound like a Halloween-themed single about devils. And it is, but for the fact that those are internal demons, and Halloween is every day for the person singing the words. Many listers will find their own version of the devils which need slaying. Now you know you’re not alone, and you have a soundtrack to go along with your task of getting better.
Dead Horse – Sweaty Legs
There are a few jobs that every community needs. But whoever will be chosen to do any of these jobs will not be able to live their life as the other in the community do. They’ll need to stay in a different place than others, behave differently, and communicate differently. Dead Horse’s musicians, one would imagine, are much the same way.
The local executioner didn’t get to have sandwiches with the folks for lunch in the local tavern. They’d get their special door to walk into town, and he couldn’t even reveal his identity or tell a joke he might’ve recently heard.
But that was alright. Kings didn’t do that either. They were stuck in a castle somewhere. And what about musicians? They were supposed to entertain, but even they were removed from the regular goings-on of the community. The artists that people respect the most were eccentrics. Little of that has changed.
Dead Horse’s “Sweaty Legs” sounds like dance music made by punks who’ve suddenly switched from beer to liquor. It’s played with demented intensity, and seems to want to convince you that whoever made this isn’t allowed to live in a 2-mile radius of their former neighbours. The performance brings to mind Lux Interior and The Cramps, but only louder and more chaotic. These aren’t people that you’ll meet for coffee and a polite conversation. And, that’s just fine!
