The Problems features Hell No singer John Woods along with members of the German bands Cockbirds, Motormuschi, Select Your Fighter, Der Feind, Blendwerk, and Vorwärts Alright. Regular No Echo scribe Freddy Alva just released a four-song cassette (there's also a hidden Cheap Trick cover).
Opener "Drunk Again" is a fast-paced hardcore punk number that showcases the group's stripped-down, no-bullshit guitar tone. If you're already familiar with Woods' snotty vocal attack from his days in Hell No, he hasn't changed his approach up at all. This is a good thing.
"Buy Something" and "Reykjavik" keep things moving along in a brutish hardcore style. "I Hate Artists" has a driving rhythmic pattern that brings to mind early Killing Joke in certain parts. At the end of the cassette, The Problems take on Cheap Trick's "He's a Whore" and give it a Sham 69-like kick in the ass.
With Woods living in the States and the rest of the band in Germany, I'm not sure if The Problems have any intention of playing any gigs in the future, but the songs on their debut cassette would be prime for a sweaty basement show.
Get It
- Wardance Records (cassette)
