THE SKUDS - Live & Drunk / Creeps by Stoney
Finding a pair of different musical pieces to review by the same band is a rarity but in the case of THE SKUDS, not at all unexpected. After all, punk is all about differentiating one’s self from the crowd while rawking on with ferociously independent spirit. With these two releases, that spirit is evident.

First off, cd release “Live & Drunk” is a rough and rawking platter recorded presumably at downtown’s Sector 7G. From the instrumental intro to the foul-mouthed between song banter, it is clear that THE SKUDS are no mere pop punk wannabes. THE SKUDS play the kind of punk that would make Good Charlotte piss their britches are run home to mommy. No posers found here. These tattoo’s are a badge of courage not a decoration. For those not punk savvy, THE SKUDS make it easy here even providing verbal instructions such as “make some f**kin noise” and “ya’ll run around in a circle”. What more can a punkster ask for? High energy songs about anger and alcohol all presented in a chaotically controlled setting. Stand Out Track? “Anihilation”

Next up was a brand new fresh copy of THE SKUDS new release entitled “Creeps”. If getting two things at once wasn’t punk enough, I got this in the mail in cassette form! Either I have been showing my age badly, the guys think that the LL offices are behind the times or, they just wanna take away the “forward easily” option that cd’s offer! All this did was made me listen to it from start to finish all the while daydreaming of the day THE SKUDS would send me something on vinyl!

“Creeps” comes crudely packaged complete with lyrics of four of the releases' six songs (see, I did listen!) and while the band's lyrics are basic, I must confess that at times I still couldn’t match them up to the singer and at least once, I didn’t get what the song was about (Boots of Soybeans). Once again recorded at Sector 7G, what shines through is the power and the rawness. So what if I don’t “get it”! Someone will and in a way I’d be willing to bet that the band could care less anyway. So what did I like best about “Creeps”? I absolutely dig the tune “Blood for Oil”. In your face but easy enough for even a old fart punker like myself to digest.

The best thing about these releases? You can go online and download everything including the artwork! Just a quick visit to http://www.gradyporn.com/skuds.htm and you can find out about this ferocious bunch of dudes and steal their music! They’ll love ya and might even kick yer ass for doing so!