by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Way back in the first week of February, Rick Rude released their third full length album, Laverne, a record that stands among our favorites (exhibit a: an attempt to do it justice). Maybe you’re familiar, maybe you’re not, but the great thing is that it’s never too late to get yourself acquainted (or reacquainted) with the record. The New Hampshire based quartet come bursting out the gate with a rollicking blast of homespun rock, fuzzy and dynamic, earnest and blistering. There’s a sense of Crazy Horse bred twang that’s matched with the dust of SST era Meat Puppets and the tangled dexterity of early Modest Mouse, but Rick Rude is a band of unique personality, and that’s what truly shines through on Laverne. It’s the sound of a band that feel more like family, the involvement of each member an important piece of their engaged structures. Released via Midnight Werewolf and Best Brother Records, the band weave between the emotional weight of loss and outbursts of joy, the music both following suit and presenting juxtaposition.
On an album full of highlights, “Agglutination,” the record’s centerpiece, might be the highlight, a song that feels mountainous as the band swarm between careening distortion and layers of riffs, bent and shaken into oblivion. From it’s gentle introduction to the winding bass, Rick Rude set tone before quickly wrapping the song into knotted bliss, the twin guitars harmonizing even as they pull apart, the drums cascading deep into the combustible pocket, the lyrics visual yet abstract. “Agglutination” feels cathartic, working from a general ease toward a mounting tension, but glistening all the while. It’s a collective release, rattled and tattered, eventually erupting toward greener pastures. The video, shot by Bryan Hamill and animated/edited by Rick Rude’s own Ryan Harrison, pairs together live performance footage with delightfully scribbled cartoons and psychedelic effects, the combination of it all fitting of the song’s textural sound.