After a decade in hibernation, the illustrious Bancroft Records has been reestablished in Durham, North Carolina (this label goes from one beer mecca to another...is Germany next?). I always associate this label with a golden era of Midwestern garage and punk (although not all of its acts were Midwestern or American at all!). Algoma, Wisconsin's Hue Blanc's Joyless Ones would have fit right in with the Bancroft roster back in the day. They were even set to do a 7" with the label -- which for various reasons never materialized. No worries, though. All these years later, Hue Blanc's Joyless Ones remain one of the finest musical acts in all of the American Midwest. And their self-titled fourth album (and first full-length in seven years) has turned up on the relaunched Bancroft imprint. All is right with the world!
Hue Blanc's Joyless Ones are a very difficult band to describe. It's a cliché to say a band "has its own sound", but it's 100 percent true in the case of HBJO. There's literally no other band out there that sounds like this. Think bluesy garage rock meets pre-punk meets post-punk meets psychedelic rock meets non-pretentious poetry meets straight-forward Midwestern rock and roll featuring two songwriters with contrasting and complementary styles. If this were 30 years ago, we could just call it "indie" and be done with it. But in the world of 2022, I'm going to side with Goner Records and categorize this as "mutant rock." It doesn't fit into any box, and why would you want it to? While it has its share of quality rockers (check out the opening 1-2 punch of "Black Charms" and "Winter Palace"), the new album is at its best when it unfolds in surprising and interesting ways. This album is a big-time grower (there I go with the clichés again!) that sucks me into a musical journey that's unpredictable but always enjoyable. The songs are fantastic all the way through, and "All Dale Merrill's Party Stores" has to win the award for song title of the year. This is the kind of release that ought to exist on vinyl; I'm thrilled to report that it does! Get your copy straight from Bancroft Records. Also available is the new album from Zurich Cloud Motors. I'll have more to say about that very soon!
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