Kjümmo – S/T 7” (Duff Records)

To be honest, I rarely have negative criticism for record labels who’re putting a lot of their time and effort into promoting punk rock bands and the underground DIY scene in general. These situations are extremely rare, and sometimes it just happens in certain circumstances. Whatever may be the case, sometimes labels are not paying attention while promoting their latest releases, and this eventually might be the case with the material I’ve received during the weekend. The one thing that bugs me about this recording is a lack of information about the group. There’s nothing I could eventually use as a starting point so I could introduce the group to the potential listeners. Usually, I would throw away this type of promo material in a trash can without giving it a further listen, but I heard loads of positive critics about this release.

This poorly burnt CD-R represents a replacement for a proper 7” record, which perhaps looks quite good. However, I can’t judge by its visual appearance since the actual cover artwork is lacking from almost all the streaming services and social media. The CD-R sporadically skips at some places, so I’ve possibly missed some moments while listening to the material. If I put these obstacles aside and solely focus on the music, Kjümmo has a lot of things to offer to the potential punk rock audience. The group nurtures a specific garage punk rock sound drenched in a recognizable aesthetics of energetic rock’n’roll music. These two primary aspects of their music are gradually equalizing to perfection, but sometimes punk rock oscillates with more power than rock’n’roll and vice versa. Their music unavoidably resembles the sonic articulations of the greats such as Motörhead, but Kjümmo is also keeping some signature moves during these four numbers.

You’ll notice how more heavyweights of the beforementioned genres affected their writing, composing, arranging, and musicianship in general, so to be completely honest, the group entirely nailed every aspect of their debut material. The contemporary production technics are decorating these old school sounding orchestrations. Therefore, you’ll spot on every single detail throughout the entire recording. The guitars are sounding super tight, while the basslines are receiving some special spotlights along with the dynamic drumming performance. Alongside abrasive-sounding lead vocals, the entire group liberates powerful tones that will unquestionably indulge admirers of both punk rock and rock’n’roll sound. This material is a real deal for all those punk rockers who love their music swift, ruthless and dynamic.

Support the work of the group by purchasing their debut 7” record. The material is available on all streaming services, while the vinyl comes exclusively at Duff Records.