Stubborn Assholes - Pissed Off Songs

Stubborn Assholes are Guitar/Vocalist Jake Bingham, Bassist/Backup Vocalist - Dave Bingham andDrummer Noah Werner. Pissed Off Songs marks the trio's sophomore release following 2023's Distortion On Drugs.

The fact that they hail from Michigan is not insignificant, featuring as it does some truly legendary names, including, The Stooges, MC5, Alice Cooper, Negative Approach, Laughing Hyenas, Necros, Death, Necros, Crucifucks, The Gories, The Dirtbombs...you get the picture. A state which has suffered over the decades from industrial decline, so it seems apt that this resultant frustration and despondency has been soundtracked by such artists and if the album's title is anything to go by Stubborn Assholes too.

For those expecting all out Blitzkrieg D-Beat Hardcore, 'Power Surge' will come as a shock, but that's not to say a disappointing one. Instead it has more in common with the Sludgy Post-Hardcore of Tacoma trio Karp, so much that the track wouldn't be a mile off of that which could be found on the band's Mustaches Wild debut. Pretty damn irreverent fun. 'Hangman' has a little more pace and appears to embrace the nihilism of Poison Idea, the War All the Time/Feel the Darkness cycle in particular. In fact Vocally you are reminded of Jerry A and as such if I'd been told that this was a long-lost PI track I'd have believed it. Superb. 'I Love You But You Stink' is what you might have got from anti scene Punks No Trend, both sonically as well as with respect to the track's lyrical absurdity. There's also some early Melvins slipped in for good measure too, so, right up my street. 'Cops N Bacon' leans towards Fang style Hardcore, especially tracks such as 'Drunk & Crazy'. One of the few occasions when that band sped things up a bit, which is more than ok by me.

As with Antiseen 'Shitdogged' appears to tap into fairly straight-forward Punk Rock ala The Ramones, albeit with a much gnarlier approach while '61 Percent' is more Jesus Lizard orientated, the opening section particularly reminiscent of David Yow and Co, (think 'Nub'). A little faster than what that band usually deliver but excellent nonetheless. 'Concrete Slab' is aptly named, capturing the intensity of The Rollins Band and Gore while 'Dwayne The Punk Rock Johnson' evokes the gritty Punk-Metal goodness of early L7, 'Bite the Wax Tadpole' anyone? 'Hick Town' is absolutely fantastic with a highly infectious main riff, the vibe here akin to the Country Punk of The Meat Puppets while also reminding you of MDC's 'My Family' Is a Little Weird', a personal favourite. 'Upmost Disrespect' has a thuggish Street-Punk and Oi! flavour to it which fans of bands like The Bruisers and Iron Cross will appreciate, as indeed do I. 'Bad Luck Jam' is an unusual number, with more of a Bluesy Stonerish feel apparent, albeit one that doesn't feel in any way self-indulgent. Some superb Guitar soloing and a solid rhythm backing demonstrate a band unafraid of fucking with listeners expectations. The album concludes with a decent cover of The Butthole Surfers 'Goofy's Concern',from the underrated Independent Worm Saloon record, one of that band's heavier releases and hence one ideally suited to Stubborn Assholes. Essential? Hardly, but seeing as The Buttholes have not put out any new material in decades, it'll do.

Both the album's title and gory Unsane-esque cover art guarantee that this was never going to be a twee Indie Pop release. While the music is kinda what you'd expect from a band such as Stubborn Assholes, there's enough stylistic deviations to keep things interesting.