Review #30: Nü Sensae - Nü Sensae (2008)

Nü SENSAE

Year: 2008
Genre: Punk Rock
Sub-Genres: Noise, Hardcore, No-Wave
Label: Isolated Now-Waves
Tracks: 8
Length: 12 Minutes (Short)
Style: Angry
My Rating: 6/8

FUCK... I just got out of one pretty shitty decade as far as music goes. Hopefully there's a bright future for that sort of thing ahead, since 2010 arbitrarily marks some sort of fresh slate left for us to refill. Still, there have been a number of far-and-few-between rock bands that have made the last ten years not COMPLETELY unbearable. Nü Sensae is one of 'em. No-Wave magic spliced with hardcore fury and energy, this is one of those bands that sound pissed like they MEAN IT. They've released an EP a few months ago, they've been on several compilations, and they're planning on doing a new full-length record, soon. This is their debut one-sided LP.

The music is influenced by the Germs, Bikini Kill, L7, and the Cramps, I believe. There's a pretty strong Germs influence on this album, as Andrea has a few moments here where she sounds like a slightly higher-pitched female Darby Crash with her screams. It's the kind of scream that you don't hear in modern music very often, but it sounds great. It's rough, it's pissed, and it lasts. This album really feels more like a hardcore record to me, but there are a lot of No-Wave characteristics as well.

1. Raven Tussle
Starts with a bizarre-sounding radio broadcast. Then the song starts. Heavy, crunching bass, thrashing beats, and screams chock-full of energy, here. The only lyrics here are a single line which I cannot interpret towards the end. Other than that, mostly screaming.

2. 1992
This version is a hell of a lot better than the "Emergency Room, Vol. 1" version. It packs a lot more of a punch, and it's slightly faster. The other version was sorta lame, but this version makes up for it. It's a good song about different years of the 1990s. For some reason.

3. Don't Panic
One again, this one is an improvement from the version off of "Emergency Room, Vol 2.". The other version was good as well, but it didn't really carry a tune at all. I like at least a semblance of a tune in my songs, no matter how small. With that said, this song is really fucking cool. They made a music video for it!

4. Cut Throat Nine
Mainly hard fast beats with a totally fuzzed-out riff. I love the part of the song (with the bass beat) about 1 minute into it, for some reason.

5. The Witch
Opens with the line from the Wizard of Oz, "Are You a Good Witch, or a Bad Witch?". Andrea repeats the line "I can feel my fingers, I can feel my legs", which for some reason I find kinda funny. I can feel my fingers and my legs, too. I guess that means that this is one of those songs that, like, I can relate to a little bit. The song gets faster at the end.

6. Brain Aid
A fast song with a great beat. Gotta love Andrea's screams. They are really something, here. A good song.

7. Peter Tripp
"Don't fall, Peter Tripp!". Another more regular-sounding song from the band, so there's nothing extremely notable about it. Basically, it has a similar beat as the first track, except this one isn't as good.

8. Graceland
Hey, that's where Elvis lives! Starts with pounding drums and cymbals. I like the vocals on theese song. It izz a good song. This iz the end of Side 1 which means that it's the end of the album because this album only has one side on it and that side is Side 1.

This is just a really good, aggressive, noisy punk album. There is more to come, so make sure to see these guys live (there's only two members!), and don't forget to actually buy their records!

THE MUSIC VIDEO FOR "DON'T PANIC"

Review #18: Nü Sensae - Three Dreams (EP) (2009)

THREE DREAMS (EP)

Year: 2009
Genre: Punk Rock
Sub-Genres: No-Wave, Noise
Label: Critiscum Internationale Records
Tracks: 4
Length: 8 Minutes (Short)
Style: Rebellious
My Rating: 6/8

Nü Sensae is a No-Wave hailing from the Vancouver, B.C. Canadian punk scene which is birthing a variety of other good bands at this point. The band formed circa early 2007 and plays a noisy, abrasive form of punk that is reminiscent of No-Wave from the '70s and '80s. The band only has two members; Andrea Lukic, who sings the songs and plays the bass guitar, and Daniel Pitout, the drummer.

The band released a 12" self-titled record last year on Isolated Now-Waves, and this rekerd is the newest release from them which was released only a month ago on Critiscum Internationale Records.

1. Mowgli and Sly
First thing that comes to mind is fuzzy. Begins with a sludgey riff and thumping bass drums. The second half of the song is thrashier and faster, and Andrea is singing in this part. A pretty good song.

2. Mens Rea
A more traditional-sounding song, but still innovative. I like the drums especially on this part, and you hear the line that the title of this record, "Three Dreams" is derived from. Ultimately, it's a pretty simple song. End of Side 1.

3. Worm(s)
The first Nü Sensae song I ever heard. They made a music video for this. It's similar-tempoed to the previous track, but it's more aggressive and the vocals are harsher and have more flow to 'em. I swear I'm hearing the noises of strange animals in the background of this.

4. Fantum
The bass is very throbbing, here. A notch less fast than the last couple songs. The verse riff here is very good. Ultimately, though, I consider it the weakest track on the album. Not that it's bad or anything, but all of the other songs on here are pretty spot-on for the tone they're going for... who the hell am I to question 'em, though? Anyways, the record ends here.

It's pretty short, so when it ends, part of you is left wanting a little more. However, you can always check out their earlier LP, and they have been featured on a few compilations as well. I recommend this band's music to all fans of early Sonic Youth, Bikini Kill, L7, and the Germs, whom they are influenced by.

MUSIC VIDEO FOR "WORM(S)"