by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Austin’s Big Bill have never been an overly serious band, and that’s okay, the world has more than enough of those. Instead, the quartet embrace absurdity and make music that’s both fun and sometimes challenging, with a sound that’s been shifting since their beginnings. While best known for making colorful art-punk, the band embraced the weird and ridiculous, and though their sound has changed, that’s still definitely the band’s mentality on their sophomore album, Public Freakout Compilation. The record (not a compilation) is due out June 10th via Spaceflight Records, and finds the band jangly their way closer to indie pop than ever before, but there’s no shortage of jerky art punk in the mix.
“Almost Everybody” is the record’s second single, one of the album’s most laid back moments, embracing fuzzy pop and hooky alternative rock. There’s still an undeniable sense of force, from the hard hitting drum fills to squealing duel guitars, but this song is catchy above all else. The band move from one hook to the next, with the kind of energy to land every big rock ‘n’ roll moment. The video, directed by Shannon Wiedemeyer, is where it really comes together. The clip features band members out within a secluded Austin setting, each convulsing as they are taken over by their demonic insides. They evolve into what would appear to be Satan, a werewolf, and sea monster, but life doesn’t seem so bad. Satan is rather enjoying himself, complete with a solo dance number, but Big Bill’s drummer Alan is having none of it, as he takes his pooch and makes a run for it.