Screeching Weasel Album: “Major Label Debut [EP]”

This CD has the best 6 songs the Weasels have done. Both the lyrics and music hit hard and fast (no forced sounding love songs like on "Bark Like a Dog").

Welcome back to the world of good punk music! After the devastatingly terrible Bark Like a Dog and How to Make Enemies and Irritate People efforts, SW finally get their act back together. This CD is ten-and-a-half minutes of Reborn Punk from the midwestern rodents.

"Bark Like a Dog" didn't do it for me; well written and produced, it seemed to be missing something. Basically, it was a last-gasp 'classic line-up' Weasel record that didn't sound 'classic'. They'd stopped touring and somehow that detracted from the whole thing too. Well here they are a couple years later with a fast(really fast)drummer and a second axe slinger, with Ben singing and sounding like he's got the fire back in his belly. Biting, somewhat bitter social commentary type vocals. You're not going to find a "Veronica hates Me" here, but this is deifinitely Screeching Weasel. Think one of Ben's MRR columns set to fast, extremely tight punk music. The following long player "Television City Dream" is more of the same.

Okay, this album kinda stinks in its own little way, but is good for the "new sound" SW. More punkish than the stuff I adore, it has a bite to it that prevents me from relegating it to the Anthem pile. Screeching Weasel is NOT about punk rock, Ben says so.. :) So why did they release this?