Gangbangsters - Somebody Get Me A Lobotomy

Hear The Track Here

Let me see now, (counting on his fingers), its been some thirty years since punk first reared it's saliva covered carcass so I guess it's about time for another go round. Nostalgia pays ya know, even if its for something as grubby and obnoxious as a punk in full flow. Personally, I loved the music (and still do) for its energy and its style, for that I can forgive any number of grievous musical/technical errors. The massive flashback that Somebody Get Me A Lobotomy set up in my head sent me straight back to mid 1977 when the Sex Pistols, Clash, Damned were relatively unknown and the music was fresh, vibrant and so in your face you could see its tonsils.

Funny, then, that it should come from LA's Gangbangsters.

I first met this artist when I reviewed Shoelaces, a kinda/sorta rap hiphop track that I liked for its energy although I had reservations about the backing track. Then along came In Decent Company (January 2009) and the excellent 6:17AM (April 2009) both solid chunks of electronica albeit with that Gangbangster roughness of sound. To say that the authenticity and power of Somebody took me by surprise in an understatement. When I first heard it I was walking down the street and stopped dead wondering wtf I was listening to. Then I played it again to be sure and checked what it was when I went home. Sure enough, Gangbangsters do an extremely credible punk too.

Of course it isn't fair to look critically at a punk track because, ultimately, it IS about the roughness of the sound as much as the song lyrics. What surprised (and delighted) me was the nailing of the period even down to the sub-Clash woahhh backing harmony, although I can't say I ever heard any punks I knew use the word 'conceptualize ' in a song. Like all class punk, it's fast, furious and to the point coming in at just over a couple of minutes. If you like the sound of 'classic' punk then sure as s*** you are gonna love this and be pogo-ing with your mates before you could say 'safety pin'.

Excellent recreation of the sound of punk. Highly Recommended.