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VENUS IN FURS – Just Try it On
(2015 Self-Release)
Venus in Furs will host an Album Release Party on Saturday, September 26th at The Frequency at 10 p.m. Cover is $8. Also on the bill are Damsel Trash and Sons of Atom.
Just Try it On will be released physically on vinyl only. You can score your copy at the release party on the 26th and, following that, at local vinyl outlets. You can sample and purchase both MP3 and lossless versions for download here as well as at iTunes.
Madison is one of the few cities that still flies its punk flag high and is universally known as one of the hardest rocking places in the USA. Two of our clubs were recently chosen by Buzzfeed in their recent feature “20 Small but Mighty Venues That are Keeping Rock Alive.” It’s no mystery that Venus in Furs would frequent both the Frequency and the High Noon Saloon. Their feisty brand of punk-meets-surf-rock is precisely the fix that rockers salivate for in this town. Just ask any local rock band or fan, Venus in Furs is near or at the top of their list. Just ask Isthmus, too, who recently selected them as one of twelve “Madison musicians you need to hear now.” The band was also recently featured in Our Lives magazine.
Since recruiting former Screamin’ Cyn-Cyn guitarist Cynthia Burnson, Venus in Furs have added extra heft to their already formidable trio of guitarist Victoria Echeverria, bassist Natalie Hinckley and drummer Marlo Dobrient. That heft goes atomic with the in-your-face production on Just Try it On which was recorded at Clutch Sound Studios by Meghan Rose. Hinckley’s bass is powerfully robust throughout while the twin-guitar attack melds into a solid rock wall that can simply crush your face. Power thrashing is not all these women are good at, however. They also have multiple singers and just enough melodic ear candy to hit that sweet spot before they bowl you over with some monster riff. They have a sense of humor for sure (“Macy’s Stacy”) but they can also wax political. Check out “Progress,” one of this album’s best tracks. An extended intro leads to Echeverria’s declaration of “That’s what they call progress / That’s what I call bullshit.” Suddenly the band has switched gears before Hinckley delivers a stupendous vocal refrain: “She climbs a wall / What it means to be American / She climbs a wall / What it means to live in America / She climbs a wall / And the fall of empire.” One more killer riff and it all crashes to an end in less than three-and-a-half minutes. “70 Cents” is another barnstormer: “We don’t need another pacifist / The scene could really use another activist,” while declaring, “Ignorance is not a birthright.”
References to the troubling state Wisconsin finds itself in abound, especially in “Left Mitten”: “Wielding rope and a mean pickaxe / Fighting back when we’re under attack / Protecting Sconnie’s from the Legislature /Plowing forward to a better future.”
“Still” is another great track with several changeups, spotlighting Dobrient’s powerful drumming. It’s also a great example of the versatility of Venus in Furs. “They say that I’m a dreamer / Feels sometimes like I’m the only one/ Am I the only one?” an updated take on the classic Lennon statement. After all we’ve been though around here lately, there are still some left to be sure. While “Still” reminds us that we’re “Marching forward to disaster / Running backwards from the answers,” Venus in Furs seethes with gutsy truth while instilling their listeners with a steel resolve.
No more bullshit. Long live Madison rock.
