bugs & rats: adidas

Vinylization of a 2010 CD-R by this Quincy, MA trio who have been around since 2003. Their longevity makes it damn odd that this is their first LP. But it is. The fact becomes even odder when you hear how goddamn great the album sounds. Perhaps it's only with the coming of bands like Guerilla Toss and NE Patriots that Bugs & Rats are getting their vinyl due. But it should have happened long ago. The real antecedents of their sound seem to lie in the early '90s Scab Rock scene, of which Boston had proponents such as Kilslug, Hullaballoo, Nightstick and whatnot. Theirs was a sonic collision of post-no wave noise, Crypt-oid garage rock, and sludge metal. Its local thread was all but erased by the ascendant dogshit and vom of bands like the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, but a smoldering spark lurked in Quincy. Feeding Tube is happy to fan this sputtering flame into a roar. And Adidas is it. This album follows a beautiful blabbermouth trajectory of non-core/non-noise aggression with riffs, drums and vocals, blaring and blasting into the darker regions of the New England night. The pace is alternately slugged and frantic, just as it should be. And the more I hear the scream of their feedback, the warmer I feel. You will too." --Byron Coley, 2014; edition of 250, hand-painted silk screen gatefold jackets by Kellzo of Bugs & Rats.