Punk's Not Dead

PUNK LIVES! Hallelujah!

Back in 1996, upon hearing that the Tacoma, WA band My Name had broken up, I thought to myself "Okay now punk is dead". All the cool bands with true DIY spirit seemed to be calling it quits (the same year also saw the demise of Alice Donut – another of my favorite '90s bands – so I was a feeling a little distraught).

What I didn't know then was that former My Name members Abe Brennan and Trevor Lanegan were forming a new band in Fort Collins, CO. I can't recall what or who informed me about Wretch Like Me, but I'd like to say "thanks!" to that person or thing.

Wretch Like Me, though a different creature than My Name, is a fantastic punk act. Gone is My Name's compelling punk/jazz fusion and experimentations with timing and harmonizing. WLM has stripped the music down to its bare punk elements opting instead for speed and aggressive auditory attack.

Lanegan is an amazingly agile guitarist. His riffs are dutiful when they need to get through a short song quickly and possess enticing hooks when the tunes are meant to be more engaging. To this, singer Brennan adds lyrics that are a pleasant mix of humor, auto-biography and universal themes. He has become quite a crafty singer and utilizes his vocal comfort zone very well in WLM. Both Lanegan and Brennan deserve broader recognition of their talents. WLM's sound and personality fleshes itself out nicely with Roy Anderson on second guitar, Jeff Matz playing bass and Jason Livermore pounding on the drums.

New Ways to Fall: Brennan gets sole writing credit for much of the music and lyrics on this album. 'I'm From Nowhere' is a short reflection on how he's moved around so much he feels like he has no home. The song 'Wriggle' is more of a group effort with some nice melodies and frenetic hooks. It tells the tale of an illicit affair that draws unwanted attention from his lady's brother and father. I interpret 'Punk Rock is Big Business' as a commentary on all the punk acts that went for those large corporate paychecks in the mid-90s (Green Day, OffSpring, etc.). Other standouts: 'Hello Hollywood, This is David,' -'New Ways to Fall' and 'Desire'. Two songs deserve mention for their titles alone: 'Girl Leaves Boy, Boy Writes Song' and 'To the Guy That Accosted Me at 45th & University'. (Journalistic discretion requires me to acknowledge that I live very close to that intersection, know it well, but was NOT the guy who accosted Abe.)

Calling All Cars: This is WLM's newest and strongest release. 'Desperate' is a fun rocker that hooks you early, falls apart dischordantly midstream only to draw you back in for the finale. It has cool words too: "I'm bad at being in the World but I'm worse in my head / Didn't know that Armageddon could take place in so small a space." There are noticeable tributes to earlier punk including: 'Rock Against You' with some very Dead Kennedys influenced guitar licks and 'Silently Violently' which could have been a Ramones tune. Checkout the fantastic hook in the song 'Calling all Cars'. As for vocal arrangement, Abe is at his all-time best on the tracks 'Calling All Cars,' -'Catherine' and 'Silently Violently'. The final track , 'Happy Song' is a standard (but great) rock tune that would make an excellent "hit" for radio or TV channels for WLM had they decided to go that route (thankfully they did not!).

Lastly, there's the obligatory "secret" track tacked on to 'Happy Song' after some extended silence. It's a prank phone call Jerky Boys style. It's funny the first time you hear it, but not so funny the second and third time. The extended silence kindly gives you a few minutes to run to your player and restart the disc.

If you're looking for real punk ... in spirit as well in practice ... you need to pick-up one or both of these discs.

-Mattro

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