"Locals Only" review!

"She's So Atomic"

The debut record by Seattle’s Atomic Bride is full of twists and turns and surprises - a bona fide thrill ride of rock. Remember the U-Men? How they turned the early Seattle punk scene upside down and inside out? Well, Atomic Bride share some of the same qualities. They take an arty post-punk base and proceed to throw in several monkey wrenches to stir up the trouble, as they wind through a punk’s garage into the heavy metal parking lot, and stop for a spaghetti western lunch along the way before capping off the night in a haunted house – maybe in the same song. Sound busy? It is…but it is also awesome. 

Chris Cool and our friend/contributor Astra share vocal duties, and their call/response moments often sound like a snottier John Doe offset by a sassier Exene. “She’s So Atomic” veers into quirky B-52’s territory but the lo-fi production keeps it all real and the explosive ending blows all fuses in sight. On “Reap” they get all hopped-up junglebilly in the verse, as Chris implores Astra to “roll me like a wagon wheel,” only to hear her retort that she doesn’t like him or his stupid song! Stupid? Nah...any song that can conjure up vibes of Gun Club, Cramps, 45 Grave, Meatloaf, and Nino Rota all in just over four minutes is pretty damn brainy in my book. But “Oxycloud” is the mindblower here – over nine minutes of psych-garage-punk insanity that is catchy as all get out and, despite my lame attempts, defies categorization. Go see ‘em for free at the Skylark Cafe on 7/25.