Meltdown

Meltdown

Texan garage punkster Mark Ryan (of The Marked Men and High Tension Wires) released a greasy, rip-roarin’ debut as Mind Spiders in 2011. When it came time to tour, he wisely went big. Bringing not only a bass player, another guitarist, and a keyboardist on board, Ryan also lured two drummers into the lineup, creating a high-voltage powerhouse. Comparisons to the late Jay Reatard are unavoidable, but that should only please Ryan. Meltdown is like that basement party you missed but will forever hear about: the one that went feral at some point and only returned to something more civilized due to a mysterious law of physics. Tracks like the breakneck-paced “Play You Out” and “You Are Dead” are accented with vintage, punky organ riffs (the latter) or dangerously crusty guitars (the former) while tethered to a ridiculously visceral bottom end, with the double drum tracks tugging at your rhythm parts. The krautrock churn of “More Than You,” the art-school post-punk of “Skull Eyed,” and the power pop-plus of “On the Radio” help keep this collection from . . . well, from melting down. Solid.

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