The Mad Doctors -No Waves, Just Sharks
Brooklyn’s The Mad Doctors refer to their sound in their Facebook bio as being: “two parts fuzz, one part reverb, and a jigger of formaldehyde.” After hearing the first 20 seconds or so of No Waves, Just Sharks’ opener, “The Ballad of Jort Dad,” you can see that their description is indeed no exaggeration.
The entire album absolutely glows with purely incendiary guitar work and hypnotically reverb-heavy vocals that seem to echo out from some distant, paranormal dimension. Additionally, the record is peppered by short faux trashy b-movie audio samples that ground the atmosphere of the album deep within a campy, sleazy haze. The effect feels like if the plot of Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill! took place at a Cramps gig (now, that would be a great remake).
Without a doubt, every song on this record is an absolute killer; from the William S. Burroughs-backed-by-The Growlers-like “Shit Hawks at Blood Beach” to the acid punk freak-out of “Mind Rot,” there’s not a single flop to be found here. However, it’s “Dial M (For Sultry)” that hits me like an atomic bomb and knocks my brain straight out the back of my skull. The track is rich with addictive hooks and psychedelically fuzzed-up guitars that crank out thick, beefy lines and chunky riffs on top of a bloodcurdlingly manic drumbeat. It’s one of those songs that will not let you go for hours after playing it. It creeps under your skin and plays on loop in your mind, altering your entire outlook and attitude for the rest of the day. It’s not often that a song can have that kind of voodoo power.
If you like your garage-punk rock to have shades of gothic-surf all under a doomy acid mist, then you can’t miss this latest record by The Mad Doctors.
You can buy their album on vinyl or as MP3s on the King Pizza Records’ Bandcamp page.
Record Crates United 