“For Daze” by Faux Machismo

Leeds based △Stoner△Witch△Doom△Grunge△ duo Faux Machismo have shifted the tone from their sludgy proto-metal beginnings into a kind of trance-like doom grunge form. The hypnotic minimalism of new single “For Daze” captures the 2020 sensation of being trapped in a kind existential quicksand.

Faux Machismo is Maeve Munro on guitar and vocals and Anna Ridley on drums and vocals. Munro was, until a few years ago, an Auckland-based musician (Young Hellions, Cat Venom, Bengal Lights), now located in the small but significant NZ underground music enclave in Leeds.

The mood of their first release – a 4 song EP – was set on pitch-black sludgy doom metal (think early Black Sabbath rehearsal room DIY recording vibes) but with a solid melodic and hypnotic heart to the songs that was familiar to fans of Munro’s music as Young Hellions.

This new single ups the recording quality and dials back the pitch-back sludgy doom metal to allow in more air and light. The more textured approach to the loud/ louder dynamic on “For Daze” works a treat, and that “I could sleep for days” chorus release is a thrilling blast of melody, anguish, and abrasive guitar powerchords.

There’s a mention of Nirvana’s “In Utero” in the Bandcamp track notes, and there’s something of that in the chorus for sure. But, in its own way, the guitar tone texture shift between verse and chorus, and the way the song is propelled along by the drums, reminds me a lot of the kind of morose quiet/loud dynamic of San Francisco band Swell, also a stripped back guitar/ drums duo at first. (Refer to the blast from a forgotten past highlighted in the previous PopLib post.)

‘Mr Biscuits’ by Mr Biscuits

Here’s my New Zealand Music Month bandcamp purchase for 2 May. ‘Mr Biscuits’ by Mr Biscuits… this is one of THE Great Lost Dunedin albums (there’s a lot of those). OK, it’s a mini album, but all the same it’s stupendously great. In a much more interesting parallel universe than the one we live in I can imagine Mr Biscuits signing to Kill Rock Star records (yes, it is in the parallel universe too) and this being a massive ‘Nevermind’ style hit all over the world. My favourite part may be the way Sarah pronounces the word ‘arse’ in ‘My Plums are Ripe’. Hard to believe half this band is now 2/3 of Trick Mammoth.

This from the Mr Biscuits Facebook page:
“The dynamic is unstable, and there is a lot of existing tension from old issues. We used to hang out a lot but lately things have been much more difficult. We’re simultaneously each others best friends and worst enemies. We love each other but there have been heaps of fights and meltdowns. We’ve even broken up more than a few times but that’s part of what we are about. Without the tension you wouldn’t get the passion that we hopefully convey.”

– Sam, in an unpublished interview with UTR in early 2011.

Recorded nearly three years ago, our self-titled debut album is finally available via the link below. There are many imperfections, but ultimately, it is a document of the band we once were.

Our true home will always be in the seemingly hundreds of shows we played during our active lifetime, but we are extremely proud to finally present our only collection of studio recordings.

We’re sorry it took so long.”

Richard and Sam play in this band: Males

Adrian and Sam play in this band now: Trick Mammoth