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WEREWOLF JONES- Rot Away LP
In the years since their explosive debut, Premium, Werewolf Jones has truly honed their craft and sharpened their sludgy brand of punk into a far more sophisticated weapon. With greatly matured songwriting, their new sophomore album Rot Away out January 2023 on Big Neck Records, the Jones boys (Adam Hunter on guitar and vocals, Aaron Cohen on bass and vocals and Heath McManus on drums) have clawed their way into a new bracket of notoriety. The songs are faster and louder, while the riffs cut like buzzsaws and the drums pummel like a stampede, so if anyone doesn't get on board now, they will certainly be left in the dust. Opening the record, "Don't Look Now" bursts out of the gate swinging. A trudging hook opens up to psyched out guitars that push and pull like sonic tar as the rest of the trio locks in to a dark groove, providing a perfect mission statement for the rest of the album. Over the course of thirteen tracks, recorded during a marathon couple days in Madison, WI with garage aficionado Bobby Hussy, Werewolf Jones unleash a relentless barrage of fuzz, throwing the listener like a rag doll from thrash, to hardcore, to noise-punk and everywhere in between as Hunter and Cohen trade off deranged yowls that bubble with doom and nihilism. If it all sounds too dark and menacing, don't worry, it's also fun as hell. On the wonderfully titled "Eating Life/Shitting Skulls" McManus drops in after a short bass intro, pushing what seems humanly possible behind a drum kit while Cohen shrieks the titular refrain, daring the listener not to flip a table. The band has always oozed the very essence of their hometown of Detroit and Rot Away only cements them as one of the most exciting and authentic punk bands wreaking havoc in the midwest today. Full of grime and sweat, partying too much and sleeping too little, Werewolf Jones invites you to join them in the dirt and you would be a fool not to accept the offer.