THE LAMPS have always kinda been on the bubble for me……like, I enjoy a good throttling as much as anyone, and their ability to deliver sheets of pummeling feedback and squawk is unparalleled. Sometimes, albeit rarely, they pull it together enough to push out some coherent, driving, intense songs to move the pain forward and inward. I truly do like it when they do that.
I also like how on their new one, “Under The Water Under The Ground” on In The Red, they’ve also done away with the last dregs of those strangled Ralph-Kramden-under-extreme-torture vocals. Did someone get lessons? Did a new fella take over? Whatever, the city of Los Angeles just got a little bit more panicky and tense with this one. See if you can handle the wallop – here’s “An Irrational Fear of Sailors” from the new one.
DYNAMITE HEMORRHAGE 