If Ausmuteants are the gruesome bacteria giving you devilish nausea, then their Anti Fadelabel mates Lumpy and the Dumpers are the sickening diarrhoea condemning you to the lavatory for hours on end. They’re downright filthy yet so addictive, and Huff My Sack is demonstrative of the band’s strengthening legacy.
At first glance it’s a prototypical punk rock album: Martin Meyer’s whiny utterings are largely discordant, only two of the LP’s nine tracks surpass three minutes and all of the compositions present rock music in its rawest form. However, this proves to be a more sophisticated piece of art.
During the opening track, Huff My Sack, Meyer’s vile anger at an associate compels him to part ways with the microphone and engage in a momentary brouhaha. Broken bottles and skin severing ensues before Meyer’s regathers his heinous composure to conclude the song. To ‘huff’ is to sniff and while you can’t clearly decipher the lyrical message behind the disorderly riffage, it’s clear Meyer’s pissed off at someone.
Track four, Looney, is the first of the lengthier recordings. The buzzsaw guitars that dominated the opening tracks are still apparent, but moments of rapid alt-strumming also appear. After telling us he doesn’t mind going insane, a gagging episode is triggered. Then the track is over and we can all take momentary respite.
Pee In the Pool is 49 seconds of helter skelter string bashing, during which Meyer confesses that he pees in the pool. Then, as if the haste of the last 12 minutes has settled in, the band take it down a notch for the finale, Spider Bite. It seems as if Meyer’s trying to tell a story rather than send a message, which allows for greater instrumental frolic and more legible vocals. It’s Huff My Sack’s highlight, and the first time we catch a glimpse of Meyer the visual artist rather than Meyer the angered psycho.
BY TOM PARKER
