TV COLOURS / ASSASSINS 88 / DANGER BEACH NZ SHOWS

We've got three of our fav Canberra bands in Auckland this week for something of a Dream Damage label showcase:

Wed 16th Nov :: TV COLOURS - 'Are the N▲RK' at Third and Social

Thur 17th Nov :: DANGER BEACH + ROSE QUARTZ DJs at D.O.C.

Fri 18th Nov :: TV COLOURS & ASSASSINS 88 - 'Rekkit' at Tabac

tickets

TOMORROW WEST

 

MP3: TV Colours - The Kids Are All Grown Up

Searing pop-punk nostalgia on this brand new jam from Canberran TV Colours. That's not to say that the sound is nostalgic; that's more the content and the general air of wistfulness that Bobby Kill jams into this song's one minute thirty-four. Sonically, it's close to the Ramones, maybe, but with the gain turned way up and super trashy drum machine beats instead of Tommy or Marky or whoever. It's off TV Colours' split 7" with fellow RQ faves Assassins 88; pick it up at a show or direct from Dream Damage.

myspace / label

MOOD PILLS

Teddy Trouble - Byths

Just some twitchy, low-key indie rock with suburban references from when the suburbs weren't The Suburbs, if you know what I mean. The unresolved tension that nags throughout + the "cool emotional control" (and rounded guitars too) sound more like the Feelies than anything too grandiose or Canadian, which is only a good thing. Teddy Trouble share the Dream Damage label with previous RQ faves Danger Beach, Assassins 88 & TV Colours; more awesome sounds from one of Australia's best & most reliable labels.

[Teddy Trouble MySpace / Facebook]

[The Great Indoors out soon thru Dream Damage]

PET CEMETARY

Danger Beach – Apache

More sounds from the final frontier from totally mystic Canberran label Dream Damage. Danger Beach is actually the solo alias for Assassins 88 main man LA Thomas, who’s forgone the blistering brutality of his other band to record a set of half-degraded memories and subdued doo-wop on this debut EP. It’s rich in melody and “vibe” as well: sounds like surf guitars chiming out over the water in some magical high place. In another dimension it could be the theme to a Hawaii Five-O spin-off, but here it’s wistful & drenched in melancholy.

[Danger Beach MySpace]

[Buy Milky Way from Dream Damage]

BASKETBALL CARDS

TV Colours - The Kids are All Grown Up

Just quickly, here's some more Auzztralian goodness from a brand new signee to choicest Canberra label Dream Damage. Bobby Kill's TV Colours kick in a similar fashion to his labelmates Assassins 88 - perfectly formed sub-2-minute pop that would've been played at yr parents' prom if the dress code was leather jackets w/ Lucky Strikes sticking out top pockets. Totally scruffy and urgent and streaked with hypercoloured TV static.

[TV Colours Myspace]

[Buy The Kids are All Grown Up 7" from Dream Damage soon!]

TEENAGE APOCALYPSE

Assassins 88 - Go Go Second Chance Virgin (LP)

Remember Assassins 88 and their bored/drunken supermarket cart antics? Well, they've just made their debut digital release Go Go Second Chance Virgin on Canberra label Dream Damage and it's totally killer AND totally F-R-E-E-! So if you like songs that are fucking right-on and sound like '90s misfit punx kicking the brass band off stage at a high school prom in the '60s get this right now

[Assassins 88 Myspace]

[Dream Damage]

DREAM DAMAGE

Assassins 88 - Age of Consent

Assassins 88 - Go Go Second Chance Virgin

Assassins 88 seem to write a lot of anthems about sex for kids pushing their pals around in empty supermarket carts in empty supermarket parking lots, walking stoned/bleary-eyed into the sterile brightness of a service station at 3am to buy a pie a Pepsi and a jumbo bag of Burger Rings. It's definitely a sound borne of suburban boredom and I believe they're from Canberra, Australia which my friend once described as a "dead conservative hellhole", but at least these dudes are there to fuck some shit up. The duo keep it simple with bass & drums, no super proficient Lightning Bolts or boring blues rock, just super catchy and a whole lot more chill than other lo-fi punx. This is young & dumb and pumping with hormones and cheap beer, plus "Age of Consent" opens with a creepy sample from Dazed and Confused, perfect.

[Assassins 88 Myspace]

[Dream Damage - for upcoming releases]