Ford’s Fuzz Inferno – Death To The Fuzz Family 7″ (Subunderground Cultural Arson)

It was about time to return to the punk rock universe. After many exceptional indie releases, it’s time to review some fresh punk rock music. It has been a while since Ford Fuzz’s Inferno sent out a batch of their 7″ records, and the tight schedule won’t let me start writing about it. Therefore, I’ll start with the Death To The Fuzz Family, their fourth and latest EP, released at the beginning of 2023. For those unfamiliar with the band, Ford Fuzz’s Inferno is a Dutch punk rock duo consisting of Hans F. Ford (lead and backing vocals, guitars, songwriting) and Patrick Delabie (drums, engineering, production, mastering). Since mid-2021, the band released four 7″ records and one CD like Deniers Of The Fuzz Will Be Executed, Flog Yourself With Fuzz, The Book Of Fuzz – Selected Verses, Fuzz The Universe, and Death To The Fuzz Family. I will talk a bit more about their recent 7″ today.

Death To The Fuzz Family carries five raw, abrasive, energetic punk rock songs that will appeal to all the fans of old-school sound. These guys nurture a specific combination of several complementary music genres that still show their admiration towards the punk scene. Therefore, besides the sheer dominance of punk rock sound, you’ll notice heavy dosages of proto-grunge, grunge, indie, post-hardcore, and hardcore punk. Their music is enormously harmonious, melodic, ear-appealing, catchy, hypnotic, and addictive. However, they fully stacked this material with heavy dosages of raw, abrasive, dirty, fuzz distortion, so you’ll hear that thick layer of garage punk or garage rock ambiance lurking around. For me, that’s a win-win situation when the band can polarize itself and bring the best of both worlds to the listeners. It’s also impressive how they maintained that particular Dutch hardcore punk vibe and implemented it into every composition in this EP.

Ford Fuzz’s Inferno incorporated powerful, four chord-progressions and riffs with equally distorted basslines and created a dense wall of sound that burst with so much power. Profoundly energetic rhythmic sequences shine with continuous splashing over the cymbals, various accentuations, enhancements, decorations, and other drumming acrobatics that define all the best punk rock albums. Hans F. Ford keeps his singing parts as melodic as possible, but you’ll hear some occasional shouts, depending on the mood and ambiance of the song. Still, powerful back vocals and singalongs empower some segments even more. Death To The Fuzz Family will unquestionably appeal to all the fans of raw, melodic, energetic punk rock that carries all the vital elements of hardcore punk, post-hardcore, proto-grunge, grunge, and indie rock. The 7″ record is available for purchase directly from the band on their Bandcamp page. Don’t miss it!