Smarm – Smarm / The 700 Club – Demo

Cincinnati, Ohio dudes Smarm are making a thoroughly promising impresson here on their debut EP sporting a completely unpretentious garage punk sound with a neat ’77- and proto punk edge that clearly pays tribute to some local punk heritage with plenty of a timeless Dead Boys energy to these tunes, excelling in a simple but perfectly balanced kind of songcraft that also perfectly nails it in terms of infectious hooks and a determined, straightforward no-bullshit performance. Yet another excellent burst of quite 77-ish garage mayhem then is the the new Demo of 700 Club from Athens, Georgia whose three songs are captured in a way rougher sonic guise here compared to the relatively Hi-Fi production values of that Smarm record and a bit more of a Saints or Wipers bent to their songs, even crossing over into hardcore territory a bit in the closing tune No Cash and all throughout there’s also an actually quite contemporary-feeling infusion of Lumpy & The Dumpers or Fried E/m-like chaos…