Something Of Mine That'll Be In The Hatchet Next Month

Real quickly, I'm just going to go ahead and publish this little piece I wrote for the Hatchet for next month's issue. It's for their "Shows To Watch For" section, about the upcoming Parts & Labor show, which I cannot wait for, and I tried to tone down my fanboy enthusiasm for this band. I ended up editing out a lot of profuse hyperbole, like how they're the band that this century's been waiting for. How they were giants who crush other bands in their distorted Casiotone stride, et al.

Parts & Labor
Cantwell, Gomez & Jordan
July 15th
Local 506
On July 15th, three guys from Brooklyn will be in town, doing their business. Professional face melters, Parts & Labor will be at The Local 506, with local face melting veterans, Cantwell Gomez & Jordan, opening. This will be the loudest show of the year. Parts & Labor were recently guests on the NPR rock critic talk show, Sound Opinions. The day before they showed up at the radio station to record some songs live for the show, a memo was passed around the offices there, warning of the extreme volume of the next day’s recording session.
Parts & Labor's new album Mapmaker on Jagjaguwar is the antithesis of indie rock's late fascination with lush soundscapes and string sections. Mapmaker brings to mind the SST hardcore bands that created indie rock, the likes of Husker Du & The Minutemen. Singer Dan Friel sounds like Husker frontman, Bob Mould, and the band covers Minutemen’s "King Of The Hill" at the end of their new album. It's a huge record, huge in the sense of Daydream Nation or Zen Arcade, bringing melodies under their distorted Casio keyboards and guitars. Parts & Labor remember what made the best noise rock so great, the anthems that howled under the buzz of the feedback and screwdrivers in the guitar strings.