Bettie Serveert - Oh, Mayhem

Back in the days when Matador and indie rock were king, Dutch quartet Bettie Serveert rode a wave of feedback into my life in the early 90s and stayed there for the better part of the rest of the millennium. I'm not sure whether it was my girlfriend at the time that introduced me to them or whether it was their opening slot for Buffalo Tom on the US tour behind their debut Palomine, but I definitely drank the KoolAde. Their 90s output resonated the strongest with me, but in touring the stacks at JS-NYC HQ, I definitely picked up all the records save for the Velvet Underground tribute as they dropped and saw my fair share of their stateside live shows. I'm pretty sure I missed out on the last set of US dates six or seven years ago owing to some sort of visa cancellation, but it was a pleasure to hear they had a new record in the breach.

In perusing the promo materials for the new (sadly, non-black metal-centric) Oh, Mayhem it was funny to see Peter wearing a t-shirt from Chapel Hill indie rock stalwart Local 506. Turns out that isn't so much of a coincidence, as in pulling the string, it appears that the new record is coming courtesy of North Carolina label Second Motion, itself part of a consortium that also includes Blurt Magazine and Triangle brick and mortar mainstay Schoolkids Records. Having dated the loveliest woman in Raleigh in the mid-90s, it was a pleasure to find that the Triangle remains a bastion of good musical taste.

Said promo materials also made the ominous proclamation that the band arrived in the studio with only a handful of songs and finished the record in the studio, a statement from the average band that historically means we are going to get ourselves an (at-best) half-baked stopgap release. As such, it took a bit to get this through the review cycle, but eight or ten spins in, I'm pleased to report that our Dutch friends still have it. The guitar flexing is scaled a little further back than I'd prefer, but all in all Oh, Mayhem is another strong release from the Amsterdam quartet. Hooks abound in all 10 tracks, and if there was still radio, I could see a good number of these tracks blasting from car radios all around this fair nation of ours. Blogs and earbuds are probably a much more likely eventuality, but regardless of the way you get Oh, Mayhem into your head, there is very little chance of it leaving for a very long time. Or your complaining, for that matter.

Keep track of goings-on in the Bettie Serveert camp here and get a virtual or actual copy of Oh, Mayhem via this handy link. Here's hoping we see them in NYC very soon.

R

Ceremony - Zoo

Ah, Ceremony. Always liked the gents, and sure have seen a lot of them recently. Much like their new label mates Fucked Up, it continues to be a little weird to see them on Matador. I've always admired the Gotham toreadors thinking outside the box (i.e. signing Large Professor), harder for me is wrapping my head around their aesthetic post-Superchunk. The move has certainly precipitated a less hardcore Ceremony record than we had encountered previously on their Bridge 9 tenure. Not shocking, as Ceremony are definitely a weird bunch of dudes (meant in the best possible way). It's not every band that has a jailbird and a make-up artist in the same band, but Rohnert Park's finest are not your average bunch of crucial dudes.

Zoo definitely reps the West Coast, sporting some serious Rollins/Morris vocal action, backed with an interesting Agent Orange meets garage rock vibe. Production is a little spartan and reserved, but the Zoo tracks get a lot more teeth to them live. I get the impression the hardcore kids have their boxer briefs in a bit of a bunch over the direction of this record, but it definitely stands to garner them two fans for every one they have lost. Perhaps not the best first record to get into Ceremony with, but definitely one of the best this year.

R

Live: Ceremony with Violent Bullshit @ Mercury Lounge 4.23.12

As I am, as many of you well know, a fucking idiot, I had Aaron grab me a ticket for this show thinking it was the evening of the 14th and the prospect of a late night hardcore show at Mercury seemed too good of a proposition to pass up for that weekend.  When it actually burned through the post-bday fog in my brain that it was actually a Monday night a week show a week or so later that was both 16+ and sporting a 10:30pm door time, I was a little less excited about the proposition, but dutifully posted up too early and caught all of the Violent Bullshit set.

It being late and them not being Ceremony aside, the Brooklyn fivesome that is Violent Bullshit was actually pretty fun, sporting a smart-ass front-guy (and a guy from Les Savy Fav, for what that is worth) that talked a lot of shit and laughed nervously between each song, most of which were cut from competent old-school hardcore cloth. One of their shirts was a rip-off of the Uniform Choice Straight And Alert t-shirt, if that gives you any indication of what VB are working with. Decent enough, and with enough local buzz to be getting a ton of quality opening slots, I trust I'll be seeing a lot of them at Brooklyn shows this Summer.

This was a headlining set from Ceremony, after their opening slot for The Refused show at Terminal 5. Didn't draw especially well, but did come courtesy of the estimable Ian Dickson and Hardcore Gig Volume, featuring their new lineup that appears to feature Philly scene staple, all-around decent guy Andy Nelson as a recording member. He was certainly holding down the bass slot this evening, adding to the odd Ceremony stage presence that begs the question if any of the members intended to join the same kind of band. Or perhaps if they all were on the same page as to where it is ending up. Our friend in the guitar slot brings an interesting Prince meets Hanoi Rocks vibe to the proceedings, and Ross continues to resemble the illegitimate son of Professor X, but the music is still 21st Century compliant hardcore punk rock that if not all that dissimilar from their new Matador labelmates in Fucked Up! Again, a not especially packed room, but one definitely filled with a gang of kids under legal drinking age that enjoyed frolicking in/around/on and off the Mercury stage for the duration. Not a real long set, and one that seemed to be taking its toll on Ross and his vocal cords, but all in all a pretty fun time. I wouldn't have been pleased if I had ridden out to Brooklyn to see this, but was a good time for a neighborhood show. Ceremony have been playing a fuckload of shows in town of late, and appear to be playing some more in town once they get back from some Australian dates. Keep track of all things Ceremony at their web presence here.

R