Cement Shoes - A Love Story of Drugs & Rock & Roll & Drugs 7"

Labels: Drunken Sailor Records

Formats: Vinyl/Digital

Release Date: 29 May 2020

Tracklist: 

1. Smashed On Glass

2. Knocked Into The Reptile Enclosure

3. Going Off The Grid

I just opened a beer and out of nowhere it decided to explode all over me. All I can smell is honeycomb as well (it was a honeycomb pale ale, don't ask!). Anyway, stickiness aside I'm here with a review of another Drunken Sailor Records related 7", this time from Richmond (Virginia, USA) band Cement Shoes. They have been very prolific since their formation, releasing a demo, three EPs and an album in little over three years. This 7" EP is their latest and was released in May.

The improvised Universal Studios intro to 7” opener ‘Smashed In Glass’ is a stroke of genius and it announces Cement Shoes in the best fashion here. This is great hardcore-punk with a cracking upbeat tempo, garage-punk attitude and riffs aplenty. The percussion could sit right in any 80s punk band while the vocals are a mix of harsh and feedback-laced spoken word. 

‘Knocked Into The Reptile Enclosure’ again shows the band’s sense of humour and their ability to inject fun into their music. There’s something here for any fan of hardcore, punk and even power-pop. It’s not just senseless noise and it’s definitely not sloppy, Cement Shoes are a band brimming with musicality and some really clever song-writing to boot.

EP closer ‘Going Of The Grid’ is a bit of a mid-paced rocker, with off-kilter instrumentation and a mood that’s more akin to post-punk and even Americana, in a subtle way. It’s hard to put a handle on bands that they sound like, so I’m not going to try, this is entertaining enough anyway. 

All in all this is a really cool EP from a band with a real sense of imagination and a clear enjoyment for what they do. They may be glorifying drugs (tongue in cheek or not) but punk was never supposed to be vanilla. 

A Love Story Of Drugs & Rock & Roll & Drugs is available to stream and as a free download below:-

You can buy vinyl copies from Drunken Sailor Records here - 

http://www.drunkensailorrecords.co.uk/products/667276-cement-shoes-a-love-story-of-drugs-rock-roll-drugs-7-drunken-sailor-records-drunkensailor

Drunken Sailor Records - https://www.facebook.com/DrunkenSailorRecords/