I remember when I first heard mclusky. Discovered, I’m not sure how, by one of those guys at school who just always seemed to have an eye on amazing bands, he cued up My Pain And Sadness Is More Sad and Painful Than Yours and, before we quite knew where we were, we were bouncing around the room to Joy with giant, shit-eating grins plastered across our faces.
That was around a quarter of a century ago, yet the band still elicit the same response today.
Mclusky returned last year with the awesome The World Is Still Here And So Are We and, as if that weren’t surprise enough, they found the time to fling a mini-album in our general direction earlier this year. I missed it at the time (for good reason, I promise), but that doesn’t mean I forgot about it. I was simply waiting for the right moment to bounce around the room once again (it’s best done when people are out) and so, here we are.
A short, snappy release, I Sure Am Getting Sick Of This Bowling Alley (a title that seems to reference a lyric on Chekhov’s Guns) kicks off with the wiry I Know Computer. Predominantly bass driven, it harks back to the band’s debut with its layered vocals and shards of guitar. Its follow-up, As A Dad, slips into the bruising slide noise of 1956 And All That, and with a similarly rhythmic pulse, although quite what the lyric “inside the piranha is another piranha” means is another matter.
Never ones to shy away from a geeky reference (let us not forget Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues), mclusky take aim at capitalism with Spock Culture, a sharply sketched punk blast with typically unhinged delivery from Falkous. In contrast, Hi! We’re On Strike initially has a lighter touch, falsetto vocals, and off-kilter percussion that nods to the early works of the Pixies. It reaches an unholy peak of intensity when Falkous lets rip with a riff so distorted you fear for your speakers, and it may just be the album’s highlight.
Another track built around a gruelling bassline, Fan Learning Difficulties is an ugly little beast that gives the very real impression that Falkous spent his preparation time gargling acid. It leaves the whimsically titled That Was My Brain On Elves to wrap things up on a quieter note, with Falkous reflecting on the futility of living in the capitalist paradigm.
A mere 14 minutes in length, I Sure Am Getting Sick Of This Bowling Alley condenses the mclusky remit to a near-perfect degree, trimming any possible fat and emerging as a sort of best of the band’s most unique tics. If you like mclusky (and you should), then you’ll love this (you really will). Don’t leave it hanging like I did – go beg, borrow, or steal a copy (well, maybe not steal… sell a kidney) – bands this awesome need encouragement! 10/10
