by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
I don’t know a whole lot about The Chives, but the Boston collective features members of Blue Ray, Brittle Brian, Squitch, and Looks Like Mountains, so for now, we know enough to be excited. The band, which is more a recording project than “proper band” (but so is everyone these days) will release their self-titled debut cassette on November 20th via Super Wimpy Punch (Holiday Music, Dust From 1000 Yrs, Boon) and beyond hearing the first single, that’s all the details we have.
“The Chives Buy Guns” is our introduction to the band, and it’s a great first impression. In just over two minutes of blown out garage pop, the band show a good amount of dynamics, skipping between power-pop, lo-fi punk, and fuzzy surf rock, it’s all mangled together section by section, with combustable tempos and a carefree construction lead by a singular raw guitar jangle that ties it all together. It’s noisey yet never abrasive, unhinged but accessible, with ideas bouncing together in a cohesive way that we can only tribute to basement punk magic.