Truth or die is the name of the game in America, outside of the saccharine bubble of virtual reality. The last decade provided us with academic and corporate roles that failed millions miserably. In the alleyways, backrooms, and corridors of the outside world, a storm of excess is brewing. Bold apathy, intelligent destruction, recreational drug use, two-hundred proof disregard, and unsafe sex light up the darkness and mediocrity of the times we live in.
It’s about time. Predictability and inspirational quotes get boring. I know how to read too… I don’t really care that much about what someone else said in a lifetime I never lived in. With that in mind, the Dwarves arrive back on the scene to join in the house wrecking party with “The Dwarves Invented Rock ‘n’ Roll”. This toxic blast of slick songwriting and trailer trash elegance gets off to a blistering start with the tracks “Hate Rock” and “Bleed Alright”. Echoes of later era G.G. Allin with a nice dose of the Accused blend with early Cheap Trick harmonies to solidify the heaviness and skull crushing delivery. The band is tighter than ever and takes the intensity higher than ten Red Bulls and Vodka. The album is closest in style to their classics Young & Good Looking and Come Clean.
Blag’s poisoned pop culture prose is on fine display and stays clever while managing to polarize at every possible moment. “Trailer Trash” is the love song of the summer for those of us who don’t care for the Hallmark channel or a daily routine that focuses on security. The nihilistic bubble gum-high burns bright on “Kings of the World” and the irresistible “Sluts of the USA”. Sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll, and Satanism are of the utmost importance when you enter the world of the Dwarves.
“Armageddon Party” and “Get Up & Get High” shake the walls of your dilapidated make-shift home with a sinister reminder about the joys of instant gratification. “Fiction” and “Dead on the Floor” show off the hard rock chops of the band and their undying loyalty to punk rock catchiness. Towards the end of the record, the twisted 1950s doo-wop of Sugarfix takes the wheel with guitars cranked in the “rock like a motherfucker” zone.
If you are looking for a “socially responsible message”, I suggest that you turn on the propaganda of a news network or even better, never leave your house. Aggressive, fun, and obscene are the rules of this unstable freeway. The Dwarves deliver, as we all should in the lives we lead. The trailer park just got a makeover and they’re giving away free money at the ATM. The party never lasts but the memories sure do.
-Kevin McGovern
FEAR AND LOATHING LB OFFICIAL
