Self-released – 31 Jan 2020
One Sentence Blurb
The Murms are a band from the small town of Whitecourt, in Alberta, Canada. If you are not familiar with Alberta, consider it to be little Texas of the north. The very same province that has spawned such infamous acts as SNFU, The Smalls, Belvedere, Wednesday Night Heroes, and Knucklehead. In January 2020, the Murms clawed their way out of the nearby Whitecourt Meteor Crater to release The Whitegirl Wasted EP.
I’m a sucker for a good cough, hack, or puke noise as a point of punctuation, so I was into this record from the get go. The lead, title track “Whitegirl Wasted,” establishes a tight uptempo kick-snare punch and amusing lyrics, showcasing the band’s buttery 50s vocal harmonies. This becomes a theme throughout the record– mixing with the jazzy clean guitars and downward chord progressions, it sometimes gives me a late-90s, neapolitan-coloured Fat vibe. So you can scoop that into your bowl and eat it.
By the 3rd song, “Sally,” we’ve already had tonnes of chuggy palm mute riffs, and more tasty breaks than a KitKat. An obligatory love song with 50s vibes laced deep within gives way to a more modern, technical skate punk licks and heavy bouncy sections.
This is one of my favorite things about this album. It has variety, and every song offers something different to the listener. Nostalgic at times, it has a tight well balanced sound, with licks a plenty.
The Whitegirl Wasted EP is actually first half of what was originally planned as a full length album. That second half, the Chase You EP, was finally released in February 2021 (review on that one is forthcoming). This record is superb, and yI highly recommend you check out the hidden gem.
Tyler Hall is a dude from Canada. Despite being in his thirties, he continues to play in a punk rock band like an angsty teenager.
