I've always been a sucker for that black background / pink letters combo punk bands used to do. It's a slightly, kinky twist on the typical monochromatic art style that "serious" bands used to opt for to sidestep criticism that they weren't "tru punx." It gets the job done too, in communicating to the receptive lot among us, that the band is"punk" if that's what you're into, but that they don't give the term a lot of weight when expressing their identity. They're more about making relatable and fun rock music, and that music just happens to sound like punk! A near-exact paraphrase of this description of their sound has been repeated to me by close to fifty bands in my lifetime, and I never get sick of hearing it. Because it's true just about every time! Most people don't have to try to be punk musicians; when they play music, it just comes out that way- raw and weird! This little nostalgic/philosophical romp went through my head as soon as I saw the cover of Must Be Nice, the latest LP from Philly's Dark Thoughts. I could name a dozen bands Dark Thoughts reminds me of in terms of style and presentation, and almost all of them were either on Dirt Nap or Chicago's Red Scar Industries at one point or another. Very Ramones-y, no doubt about it, but with a bratty smarm akin to Dr. Frank of Mr. T Experince's chewy, cotton-candy backwash guggling up in the vocal department and a vigorous approach to buzz-bomb guitar work and hooky flare that is shaded by the long shadow of power-pop raconteurs The Marked Men. The album is a directed blast of self-assured energy that cuts through the malaise of Mid-West ennui with a shocking amount of speed and playful aggression. It will shake off the haze of another night shift at a dead-end service job to give you a momentary piece of mind and transmit a gracious jolt of energy up your spine as you bellyflop into the blitz and bliss of a full-bore, barrage of power chords. Some might have it better than you, but they don't have yours or Dark Throught's moxie. Must Be Nice is 12 reminders of how good it feels to throw two birds to the wind and say "fuck you" to the world for one more night.
Find it on either Drunken Sailor or Stupid Bag.
