Weekend / End Times

Slumberland

Within a grainy film-still between a summer sunset and the end of times lies the post-punk squall of Weekend. The band filters the aggression, tempo and sneer of punk through a wall of reverb, haunting melody, feedback and primitive garage guitar. Formed in San Francisco in 2009, they have developed an entirely distinctive take on the history of noise rock. Combining noisy guitars, pounding rhythms and dark post-punk vibes in fresh ways isn’t easy, but Weekend makes it look like it is. Their first album, Sports, released in November 2010, was one of the most assured debuts in recent memory, full of rumbling rhythms, layers of loud guitars and most of all great songs that pay special attention to texture and atmosphere and leaven even the most riotous moments with unexpected shards of melody. Rolling in at the end of the year amidst a backdrop of sound-alike lo-fi beach-pop records, Sports stood way out from the pack, “a burning hole bridging the distance between then and right now” in the words of Pitchfork. As one of the highlights of Sports, “End Times” is power-pop as interpreted by “Feed Me With Your Kiss”-era My Bloody Valentine, a sublime mix of melody and racket that perfectly encapsulates what Weekend are about. Driven by relentless drums and a pummeling bass line, it could the most straightforwardly pop track on the album, if one ignores the insane, shredding feedback guitar that bursts through on each chorus. And it sports a melody most pop bands would kill for. On the flip side, LA duo Speculator remix album opener “Coma Summer” into a hypnotic Kraut-inflected daydream—trippy, motorik and totally compelling.  “… everything that a lot of modern indie rock is frequently failing to be in 2010: loud, immediate, and engaging, with a strong melodic sense of songwriting to tie it all together.” —Pitchfork  “… how much better could any band get than this song?” —Rolling Stone

• SHARE

  •  Twitter
  •  Stumbleupon
  •  Digg
  •  del.icio.us
  •  Facebook
  •  Mixx