Are those crazy Finns trying to mess with my head? I put this album on to listen with headphones and immediately something sounded a bit off. After checking a different album I started to play this again and after fiddling around a bit I realized that the vocals were really only coming through one headphone/channel. I then checked the ripped version on my MP3 player and also the Bandcamp page for Lunar Outpost and the same was evident on those versions as well. Phew, my brand new headphones were not faulty, nor was my ever failing hearing. Anyway, once you get used to it, vocals in one ear and not the other is actually quite good!
From the name of the band one might expect some sort of arty, math-rock approach but Lunar Outpost is, as self-described, a "Finnish four piece punktrashgarageorgangrinding band" and it does seem as if they might well stand alone in that genre of their creation. There is a high garage rock content in what they do and there is also a massive dose of "organ grinding" too and it is the latter which makes this release stand out so much to me as it stops the band from being just a decent one and allows something a bit more special to come to the fore. That shouldn't put off those who just want punk rock to listen as that is the overall feel of the band's music and is clearly the foundation on what they've managed to create here.
The music is extremely catchy and rammed full of hooks, whilst the lyrics verge between almost unintelligible and totally unintelligible (I think they're mainly in English but who knows, they could also be singing in their native language too) with quite a fuzzy quality, all of which drives along with an intensity that is both compelling and impossible to ignore. This is one of those albums that begins with a fairly average start on initial plays but quickly demands attention and in return delivers some musical gems for your listening pleasure. If you want one track to hone in on then check out "Last Human Standing," which has most things a good song needs and I can actually understand some of the words in it too--a bonus! Despite this being the stand out track I am humming numerous tunes from this album at the moment and will be listening to it again shortly--it's damn infectious.
This is the band's second album and their first offering can be downloaded by naming your price via Bandcamp, something that by the time you have read this I will have done.