Werewolf Jones - Rot Away [Detroit Punk YELLOW VINYL] - New LP

Rustbelt punk rock, maybe ragged bits ripped from fellow motor city bands from the late 1960s and early 1980s, but that might have more to do with my urge to connect Michigander bands with the mitten's past, dragged from that through the era that followed, not what I'd call death rock but dark as freshly turned graveyard dirt, reeking of gasoline and grimy used 40 weight, pounding out of the oil pit, retaining the filth but shaking loose from the sludge, coming up just to drag you down into the dirt, and into the sewer pipes of your mind, maximum rock and trashed rhythm mashed into grungy hardcore and shaking loose from that, punk trash and roll with plenty of bottom and muddy propulsion.  It might not solve all your hassles but it might just rattle your innards and loosen up junk so you can travel down into the dark and introduce you to those beast that have been bugging you, so you can grab them by the throat and bring them to light and slap the shit out of them.   Industrial strength cleaner to clear the snot from your sinuses.  Prescription prescribed. -- doctor winch

"In the years since their explosive debut, Premium, Werewolf Jones has truly honed their craft and sharpened their sludgy brand of punk into a far more sophisticated weapon. With greatly matured songwriting, their new sophomore album Rot Away out January 2023 on Big Neck Records, the Jones boys (Adam Hunter on guitar and vocals, Aaron Cohen on bass and vocals and Heath McManus on drums) have clawed their way into a new bracket of notoriety. The songs are faster and louder, while the riffs cut like buzzsaws and the drums pummel like a stampede, so if anyone doesn't get on board now, they will certainly be left in the dust. Opening the record, "Don't Look Now" bursts out of the gate swinging. A trudging hook opens up to psyched out guitars that push and pull like sonic tar as the rest of the trio locks in to a dark groove, providing a perfect mission statement for the rest of the album. Over the course of thirteen tracks, recorded during a marathon couple days in Madison, WI with garage aficionado Bobby Hussy, Werewolf Jones unleash a relentless barrage of fuzz, throwing the listener like a rag doll from thrash, to hardcore, to noise-punk and everywhere in between as Hunter and Cohen trade off deranged yowls that bubble with doom and nihilism. If it all sounds too dark and menacing, don't worry, it's also fun as hell. On the wonderfully titled "Eating Life/Shitting Skulls" McManus drops in after a short bass intro, pushing what seems humanly possible behind a drum kit while Cohen shrieks the titular refrain, daring the listener not to flip a table. The band has always oozed the very essence of their hometown of Detroit and Rot Away only cements them as one of the most exciting and authentic punk bands wreaking havoc in the midwest today. Full of grime and sweat, partying too much and sleeping too little, Werewolf Jones invites you to join them in the dirt and you would be a fool not to accept the offer."