TNS Records – 15 Apr 2022
Review: The Sewer Cats – “Cute Aggression”
In a follow-up to their 2020 debut EP Zelda, The Sewer Cats return with another high-energy album in the form of Cute Aggression. When I first heard Zelda, I found the band’s sound refreshingly unique from most other punk bands. I loved Cass’ searing, clawing vocals from the get-go. And in a very pleasant next step, the band has only grown from their debut, allowing themselves to sneak out from underneath a frenetic pace and find their grounding in a much more diverse sound that keeps you engaged through all 27 minutes of this 12-track banger.
“Sausage Fest” features some great guitar riffs and a sound that makes the listener feel like they’re in the garage with the band. For me, this really enhanced the listening experience and provided a raw and authentic immersion that a lot of bands go for but don’t quite achieve; in that sense, it’s got an intimate quality about it (in a super punky way, of course).
“English Spaghetti”, the sixth song on the album, is my personal favorite. The mix of distorted and clean guitars create a very satisfying mix of riffs. The chorus has a nice group yell that echoes the title of the track. In the second verse, the lyrics take a bit of a turn with “my neighbors say I’ve got a heart of gold / what made my taste turn sour? / my kind blood run cold”. And a little more than halfway through the song, the listener gets treated to what sounds like a very cathartic and reflective moment. The aggressive groove of the song drops out mid-chorus in a surprising change of pace and answers the questions from the second verse. After a short interlude of clean, delayed guitars, the vocals rip through a heavy, yet carefully constructed breakdown. The vocal delivery from this section’s “How dare you judge me” to the ending “I ate them / I swallowed them whole” keeps ringing in my ears. This was a moment that will stick with me, as it appears to give us the musical manifestation of some very raw and very real feelings felt by the artists.
Overall, this is a massive step forward for The Sewer Cats. They seem to have really honed their sound by expanding their instrumentation and style while continuing to put Cass’ amazing vocals on full display. On another note, the thematic elements are on point, as well, weaving a creative sociopolitical web.
Cute Aggression has some very strong moments and a lot of jarring changes in tempo, musicianship, and execution. Honestly, the only thing I would have liked to see were more moments where the bass shines. It falls into the background a little too much and only has a prominent presence in the latter half of “Russian Doll”. Having said that, this album is more than what I expected it to be. Although I’ve only highlighted two songs, I could have easily written about all of them. In my opinion, all 12 songs are top-notch.
The most difficult part of an album like this is going to be following it up and continuing the upward trajectory. Do yourself a favor and listen to this one with headphones to fully appreciate the dynamic production and guitar panning. Now give it a listen!
Tom B. Bearded is a news editor and reviewer for TGEFM. He recently emerged from the scraggly woods near your home.
