LEECHES 7" is out now through Hosehead Records. Order it here: http://www.hoseheadrecords.ca/p/webstore.html
///////
One of the best feelings in the world is to put on a 7" by a band you're not familiar with only to find yourself completely blown back by its sheer force. (A good example of this: Putting on the great 2009 Charlie & the Moonhearts B-side "My Love Is Gone"before Mikal Cronin and Charles Mootheart were well-known entities.) That happened for me with this one. On "Leeches", Hamilton, Ontario's TV Freaks craft a steady build to a chorus that's awesomely chaotic. "Lose It" is an equally big highlight. It comes packed with an overwhelming barrage of frequencies with a fairly simple lyrical mantra behind it ("not how you win, it's how you lose it"). (http://pitchfork.com/thepitch/381-shake-appeal-ghetto-ghouls-nots-tv-freaks-sam-coffey/)
“Leeches” is the pounding introduction, exposing us to a ravaging layer of sizzling guitar filth. They sustain a completely barbaric pace in each of these gritty onslaughts, which come loaded with sludgy guitar squeals and heavy percussion thuds. Vocals are exceptionally raspy and angry, evidenced by the anthemic chanting in 7″ closer “Lose It.” It’s driven by a jagged backbone of shredded guitars, sounding spiny and electrified as they barge through the track with nothing to lose. This little 7″ combines the straight-up, fuzz-fueled ferocity of the Pampers S/T, paired with the relentless stomp of Chicago’s Gross Pointe. The result is that tough, I-really-don’t-give-a-shit sound – now start by grabbing the 7″ from Hosehead Records, the first 100 come on clear vinyl! (http://styrofoamdrone.com/2014/06/20/tv-freaks-leeches-7/)
Canada’s TV Freaks have been putting out some solid garage-punk for a few years now, and this release is unsurprisingly a winner. The foundation of their sound still lies in swaggering garage-punk in the mode of those Total Punk releases, Stooges, or Teengenerate, but TV Freaks put enough of their own touches in to make this 7” truly satisfying. Just check out the hits in the awesome title track; these touches take them beyond being just another garage band. On the sub-minute “Mommy’s Place” the band dips into straight-up hardcore, with great results, while the closer “Lose It” is another great punk number in the mode of the title track that still manages to sneak in some hardcore influenced raging. What stands out to me most on this 7” though is creative guitar work that flirts with some more esoteric influences. And the off-the-wall vocals from the frontman truly sells this stuff; the guy is a force of nature. (http://www.bostonhassle.com/2014/06/22/tv-freaks-leeches-7/)
