Release Date: Oct 30, 2012
Genre(s): Pop/Rock
Record label: Sargent House
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INDIAN HANDCRAFTS play the Horseshoe on Friday (November 2). See listing. Rating: NNNN When Barrie's Indian Handcrafts self-released their debut album last year, critics couldn't stop comparing them to the Melvins. That must not have bothered the band. Their sophomore album is not only heavily ….
There's always been a strong case to be made for the power trio, a three-man rock unit capable of delivering straightforward, no-frills rock that gets to the point without a lot of pomp and circumstance. And while this setup has been the gold standard for decades, a new challenger to the throne of simplicity has appeared: the duo. Doing it bigger, heavier, and gnarlier sans bass player, Indian Handcrafts join the ranks of bands like Tweak Bird and Big Business, doing more with less and making other bands seem flimsy in the process.
If you ever listened to sludge greats Harvey Milk and thought, “I wish there was a more accessible version of this,” then Indian Handcrafts’ Civil Disobedience for Losers, their debut for the consistently great Sargent House, is right up your alley. Indian Handcrafts, the Canada-based duo of Brandyn Aikins and Daniel Allen, continue in 2012’s solid run of stoner rock albums, counting among their kin Ancestors and The Shrine. This LP isn’t the best of the lot, but it’s undoubtedly the most fun; in spirit they’re closer to their bro-rock labelmates Fang Island than any sonically similar stoner rock outfit.
Toronto, ON pair Indian Handcrafts continue to pummel listeners with latest effort Civil Disobedience for Losers. The duo, made up of Fox Jaws' Daniel Allen and Brandyn Aikins, mix the propulsive rhythms of Death From Above 1979, Tom Morello's single-note guitar breakdowns and Buzz Osborne's bellowed vocals. The band got a major leg up after L.A. label Sargent House (home to like-minded acts such as Boris) picked them up for this release.
In the back of Algebra class somewhere in a flyover state, a pimply kid with fake plastic rivets on his fake leather coat is doodling the coolest shit in the back of his notebook: frothing hulks driving hot-rods and shooting missiles at aliens; secret science labs with faceless doctors sticking worms down the throats of helpless test subjects; blood, bones, and guts everywhere. It’s 2012, he’s never heard of The Misfits or Motörhead, he’s just inspired by Indian Handcrafts. Opener and highlight “Bruce Lee” could inspire a whole graphic novel, or at least get optioned for a Tarantino-produced Grindhouse flick.
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