The Ergs! / Grabass Charlestons

Split [7 inch] (2007)

Brian Shultz

The Ergs! and Grabass Charlestons team up for a split 7" on No Idea with the best artwork I've come across in a while. Ain't nothin' better than losing lotto scratch-offs.

Up first on this goldenrod wax are Jersey's best prancers: the Ergs!, with two relatively diverse offerings. "Every Romance Language" is a fairly typical outgoing for the band -- goofy guitar chords, Mike's snotty vocals, and lots of energy. The next song, "I Like I Say, Y'Know" is taken over by Jeff, and while it comes off lyrically somber ("my father used to work in asbestos / […] / his kids are all grown up now / I'll bet he's wondering what happened to all that time"), it keeps an upbeat flair steady. Two pretty good tunes.

Grabass are next and bring their high-octane, Leatherface-on-speed sound. They don't quite fare as well the Ergs!, but a bias might be playing into my opinion. Their two contributions, "I Like Cats" and "Double Ding-Dong-King-Kong-Sing-Song… The Official Hamburger of the Soviettes/Grabass Tour Summer 2005" are pretty fun, but relatively forgettable. The latter has a fairly decent hook, but the overall lasting value of the songs is questionable.

In the spirit of punk rock, the Ergs! and Grabass certainly release a lot of records, but having teamed up together here I can almost wholly, confidently say that their particular output here is minimally solid.

STREAM
The Ergs! - Every Romance Language
Grabass Charlestons - I Like Cats