CHEATER SLICKS - Ill-Fated Cusses LP (colour vinyl)

Limited edition orange with red blob colour vinyl.

These cats are still around 37 years into their existence, and they still sound fucked-up and fantastic. Their little nihilistic ditties have lost none of their gut-punching impact, either. "Fear" sets the mood; jittery, paranoid, desperate. "Lichen" is like a beat poetry cut-up, with spooky noise oozing and spreading around the nasty imagery evoked by the spoken lyrics.

The Slicks' true power has always been blending surprisingly catchy melodies into their garage-y punk dirges. This approach is most evident in "Reaching Through". "Garden of Memories" and the wonderfully titled "Flummoxed by the SNAFU" do the same; it's a world-weary sensibility, soaked in sadness and regret, but it's so strong that it enables a soulfulness to pervade these songs, borne of their sheer authenticity. They leave one with just a shred of hope, that no matter how ugly and nihilistic the human condition gets, there's still hints and glints of beauty.

Long live the mighty Cheater Slicks.