Review: Screeching Weasel – “Some Freaks of Atavism”

Monona Music – March 24, 2020

Some Freaks gives us a re-energized Screeching Weasel that’s alive and well

Say what you will about Ben Weasel (and yes, I know, opinions abound), but he’s been around, offering up some classic records along the way.  Really, alongside other luminaries such as Dr. Frank’s The Mr. T Experience and maybe Kepi and the Groovie Ghoulies, Ben and company gave me a pretty good soundtrack to my teenage years.  When I got my first taste of Screeching Weasel with my cousin’s copy of Anthem for a New Tomorrow, I immediately got to the record store to buy whatever I could, coming home with the Kill the Musicians comp and the first Riverdales record.  I was hooked, digging into their past and keeping up through 2000’s underrated Teen Punks in Heat.  

Now, after a couple of long-time-coming records that fell pretty flat for me (First World and Baby Fat) Screeching Weasel has dragged me back in with Some Freaks of Atavism.  Freaks comes out swinging with fantastic revved-up punk like the sneering wake-up call “She Ain’t Your Baby” and the stuttering and aggressive “Brain In a Jar”.  Later, “Settle In” is one of the catchiest earworms you might hear this year.  This one feels like it’d fit in nicely alongside anything from Bark Like A Dog, with a melodic guitar lead and cool lead and backing vocals.  Same goes for “Turn It Around”.  My favorites on here, the off-kilter “Never Been In Love” and the melody-filled “Back of Your Head”, offer contagious pop nuggets that just won’t leave your brain.  “Never Been In Love” rolls through seemingly straightforward verses, and then each verse ends with an irregular drum break paired with Ben’s closing statements.  Lots of melody and some spot-on backing vocals are in there, too.  “Back of Your Head” just brings a singalong chorus that is pure gold.  The way they pull off the lead and backing vocals exchanges makes for a sort of call-and-response thing.  And the phrasing patterns are aces.  There’s just a lot that sticks with you after the record is done.

Really, for me there are only a couple of songs that fall a little flat.  “God Help Us”, feels sort of off, maybe just a bit dark as a follow-up to the poppy bounce of “Back of Your Head”.  Seems a little out of place and just doesn’t hit me quite right.  The other, the free speech plea “Problematic”, is decent enough.  It’s catchy, it shuffles with a meandering strut and some rolling piano, and it’s odd enough in its 50’s vibing to stand out.  But it feels kind of out of place in the context of the album.  But these complaints are minor.

Some Freaks of Atavism has a few stunners, a bunch of solid stuff, and only a couple of minor distractions.  I’ll take that happily.  Freaks easily has three or four songs that I could throw onto a Screeching Weasel playlist alongside songs from Anthem, Brain, Wiggle, and Bark and never miss a beat.  It sounds good, it’s well-written, and mostly a lot of fun.  Best stuff since Teen Punks, at least.

Pros

• Some of my favorite songwriting from Ben & co. in many years;
• Record sounds fun and classic without coming across as a self-conscious “return to form”

Cons

• Has a couple of songs that don’t land with me; or alternatively, a couple of songs that seem kind of out of place