Tommy and the Commies - Here Come Tommy and the Commies

I've been known to flip my shit over a Canadian band or two in my day. That was certainly the case this past February when I first heard Tommy and the Commies. I literally jumped for joy and ended up sustaining injuries from which I have only recently recovered. What is it about Canada and powerpop/punk? Are there expressways up there that allow you to travel directly to 1979? Tommy sounds like a lad who has religiously listened to the Buzzcocks, Undertones, and Dickies and thought, "Hey! This kind of music always needs to exist!" He smartly enlisted Jeff and Mitch Houle from the mighty Statues to back him in his endeavor. And just like that Tommy and the Commies came storming out of Sudbury, Ontario on a mission to fill the world with punk and pop. Slovenly Recordings, known to scan the globe for premium punk rock talent, quickly inked the band to a multi-dollar deal and lined up a debut album release for this very day. I fully expect to encounter people dancing in the streets in my travels today.

At a lean eight tracks with no song reaching two-and-a-half minutes, Here Come Tommy and the Commies is an album designed for multiple spins in a single sitting. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, and why would you want it to?! All of these songs are catchy as hell and come on with punchy guitars and boundless youthful energy. Technically speaking, it's just a damn fun record! I envision Tommy in the studio, imploring the Houle brothers that not a note will be played until everyone has consumed three cups of coffee. And there's an enthusiasm level to these performances that you just don't hear everyday. They're not just playing fast. They're playing with a palpable love for this style of music. Within the first ten seconds of "Devices", you pretty much know what you're in for. You're gonna be bobbing your head, tapping your feet, and singing along in your best Howard Devoto voice for the next 16 minutes of your life. Then you're gonna play it again! If that doesn't sound like a swell time, why are you reading my blog?

  
-L.R.

https://slovenly.bandcamp.com/album/tommy-and-the-commies-here-come-lp 
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