steering clear of the mainstream
since 2001

june 2010

review
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info opinion

Benalto

"The Haunted House EP" CDR

Failure Records

Genre: DIY punk

Failure Records
c/o Luddite Enterprises
P.O. Box 326
Daysland AB
Canada
T0B1A0

April 2006

Alberta's Benalto are purveyors of pure, DIY punk. This EP blows past quickly and noisily at first, running through three ridiculous quickies ranging in length from forty seconds to a minute twenty seven before dragging things out for a nearly ten minute finale and a slew of bonus tracks. The production values are as terrible as would be expected, and the musicianship is accordingly bare-bones. If you're into brash songs with offensive lyrics ("Saw you sitting on the bus/I watched the drool fall from your lips/I watched your cute retarded walk/I watched your hot retarded lips/fuck you like a retard") this will be right up your alley. If you're more into experimentation, that's covered too - "French Canadian Death Camp" is a drawn-out, largely-improved romp through chaotic guitars and bruised vocals. The bonus tracks are actually several covers, a welcome inclusion as they happen to be the most accessible (trust me, that word is relative) songs on this disc.

MP3 (from failurerecords.no-ip.com): Haunted House

70%

Matt Shimmer

[Vitals: 4 tracks + a bunch hidden, distributed by the label, released 2001]