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Oakland’s Violence Creeps aren’t ones to mince words and on their new single they hit their adversaries square in the throat. Now flanked with a new rhythm section The Creeps haven’t lost any steam. In fact they have plenty to blow because this is them at their angriest. Taking on a certain local mustachioed garage rocker on the A side, and Oakland’s influx of tech bros on the flip you can hear the seething hatred in Amber’s voice. Flanked by the spastic screeching guitar of Shrimp Ripper and the busy bouncy bass interplay you’ve come to expect from VC. This is them at their best and I hope the rumors that this is the end of the line are just that. 100% TOTAL PUNK!
Our take: Presumably final 7” from this Bay Area band, since they recently played their last show. They had a great run, though, and put out a bunch of phenomenal records on a slew of different labels. As for this one, it finds them breaking new ground in their final moments as a band. “Nephew Melting” is a disjointed ride, starting with a bubbly, melodic part, then taking an abrupt left turn into a skronkier, no wave-influenced part that’s more akin to the bands earlier, Flipper-esque material. The song swings back and forth between the two modes, giving it an unstable, seasick quality that seems increasingly deranged as the song progresses. As for the b-side, it’s also Flipper-esque, the bass player improvising around a single riff while the singer delivers a biting rant against gentrification in Oakland. If you’ve been following Violence Creeps, you’ll want to pick up this final single, but just because they’re done doesn’t mean that their whole catalog isn’t worth checking out. They’re one of the realest and most vital bands to come out of the punk scene over the past several years, and their records will be worth revisiting long after their breakup.