I don’t care what tech bros trying to “disrupt” the music business say. Nothing will ever destroy the raw, magical practice of getting a band together and recording songs live to tape. No production, no editing, no mistakes: Just pure, unadulterated music. It’s the most punk act in this time of bullshit generative nonsense to pour the soul into a microphone and capture it in magnetic filaments on plastic ribbon.
This brings us to the new album Birthday from Baby Muffler, an egg punk/garage rock band straight out of the fine city of Providence, Rhode Island, which is like Boston if Boston wasn’t so puritanical. (If you know, you know.) Rooted in the city’s colorful and kick-ass DIY scene, the band keep it weird, fast, and proudly homemade. That unapologetic attitude has been on display at some of the city’s most vibrant venues, such as the legendary AS220 and Lost Bag.
Birthday is solid straightforward punk, with a sound reminiscent of SST Records artists with some modern influences mixed in. (Amyl and the Sniffers and Sheer Mag come to mind.) The usual guitars-bass-drums instrumentation is here, but on tracks like “I Hate You”, the band throws in a fun organ synth that adds a layer of depth and fun to the music. No song lasts too long; in fact, the longest track “Lot Lizzard” taps out after only two and a half minutes. But the six tracks totaling just about twelve minutes is all it takes for the band to get their point across. That’s good punk ethos right there: Get in, say what you gotta say, and get the hell out!
And on Birthday, the band has quite a bit to say, making simple lyrics soar. They crave pleasure, often despite the cost (“Lot Lizzard”, “Cupid”, “Liquor”) and deplore that which takes pleasure away (“News”, “I Hate You”). And on the title track, they detest the idea of getting older, and even more so the idea of celebrating the dreadful march of time and aging. After all, that means less time they get to spend making music and messing around with friends. (As an Old Person getting Older, I can relate: I’d rather not have a party to celebrate another year, and would feel just fine cracking open a few cold ones with friends just like any other day.)
I do have to remark on the silliness of the lyrics of “Lot Lizzard”: They tell a tale of driving down I-95 and stopping at a rest area to meet up with a sex worker. As they fall for each other, they decide to tie the knot in Vegas. That drive takes about 40 hours and spans nearly 4,000 miles. I can’t imagine making such a drive, but then again, I’ve never worked as a long-haul driver. I guess the power of true love conquers all, especially in the hot, sticky, sweaty cab of a truck.
It is heartwarming to hear good punk survive in this horrible future, and it gives me hope that no matter what nonsense happens in the years to come, bands like Baby Muffler will keep finding ways to expel all their angst and attitude using the most direct media possible, whether that’s on tape or on stage. However they do it, Baby Muffler will make damn sure you hear them.
Baby Muffler are proud to release their music via their local pals at Ink Spot Tapes, a Providence-based cassette label. You can pick up Baby Muffler’s albums on tape through them and enjoy the tunes as they were meant to be heard. But if you’d rather listen digitally and support the band through Bandcamp, you can do so below. You will sure as Hell not find them on Spotify.
Written by Will Sisskind
