Turkish Techno

Past Due (2011)

Sloane Daley

Past Due could have a few possible meanings in relation to Turkish Techno. It could be in keeping with their usual anxious and desperate lyrics or it could be a reference to the fact that while the band has released a slew of seven-inch releases and made comp appearances they have yet to release a full-length until this album. Either way, the format is a welcome change as you get to really appreciate how catchy the band's mixture of East Bay sing-a-longs, SoCal guitar leads and distorted mid-western bass sounds.

If I told someone we were going to sit down and they would have to listen to 20 minutes of disappointment it would probably be met with resistance, but that is basically the lyrical themes of Past Due in a nut shell and it couldn't be more enjoyable. Take "A Letter To Mike XVX", which posits: "Though you've got the best of intentions and you've probably got it all figured out, it's so easy to lose your direction when you've got it all figured out" is simple but effective. Songs of people letting you down, casting you aside, hopelessly falling in love and getting drunk are pretty standard punk rock tropes so it is easy to scoff at them when they are presented plainly, but sometimes that is what is needed. It doesn't hurt that Turkish Techno know exactly when to throw in their whoa ohs and gang vocals, so they make every minute count.

This very well could be one of those albums that gets ignored in your collection years down the road. But while you are playing it, for those 20 or so minutes, Past Due is the queen of your world. Personally, I'd rather have that than something that drags on for a half-hour too long and sounds like a Soul Asylum B-side.