Monday, 5 April 2010

THE VERMIN POETS – THE VERMIN POETS EP (SMARTGUY RECORDS)


THE VERMIN POETS – THE VERMIN POETS EP (SMARTGUY RECORDS)

Despite their garb there is something positively refreshing about The Vermin Poets.  This is an outfit seemingly brought together to produce art in an offensive manner and be suitably derided using the garage rock form.

This four song seven inch EP is the formal introduction of the latest musical outfit of Billy Childish.  For it he has teamed up with Neil Palmer, former singer and guitarist with Fire Dept.  Filling out the foursome are Wolf Howard previously seen in the Buff Medways and Childish’s wife Julie (Ju Ju Claudius) exchanging drum duties.

It begins with something of a mission statement and the track “Vermin Poets”.  If calling cards were a concept with these guys, this would be it.  Not that there’s make any sense.  The words are very self defacing, defeatist and defiant, which is a combination of attitudes and aspirations I am not necessarily convinced is a winning stroke.  At least they use the word sonnet.

In execution there is something very The Who sounding in the work.  As Palmer leads on vocals at times his strains remind of Robert Pollard in safety mode.

The second side of the record opens with an ode to Jim Morrison and “The Doors Of Perception” which feels like a total piss take of the Lizard King.  And rightfully so.

The band appears to be telling some kind of joke, one that is more likely to be on you rather than them.  After all I did pay £6.49 for a seven inch single.

Thesaurus moment: parody.

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