Where they from?
Leeds, U.K. There’s an entire Wikipedia article titled “Music in Leeds” but not a single mention of the city’s vibrant powerviolence scene, ain’t that some bullshit? I mean they literally go out of their way to mention that Leeds is home to the “International Pianoforte Competition.” Like, what the fuck even is a pianoforte?!
What do they sound like?
Groovy, grimy, goofy, gonzo powerviolence
Why the hype?
Last week at Chimpy Fest I had the opportunity to sort of get the lay of the land of the grindcore landscape in the U.K. and to my surprise I discovered that the northern city of Leeds is actually home to a rather robust little contingent of grind/powerviolence bands, many of who share members and have lent their influence to the development of a regional sound. The Leeds take on grindviolence is basically a really goofy, fun interpretation that lends itself more to partying with your friends than lifting weights or working at Whole Foods. This sound was first brought to my attention by the now somewhat-defunct Afternoon Gentlemen, who’s last full-length in 2016 was one of my favorites of that year and also purveyed by the equally excellent Lugubrious Children and Gets Worse.
Which brings us to Ona Snop, a band that shares members with some of those other bands and who really best exemplify that Leeds sound: spazztic blurs of goofy buzzsaw powerviolence that are as blistering as they are irreverent. I feel like every one of this band’s records should come with a beer, not so you can drink it but so you can have someone with a nose ring and a Disrupt patch spill it on you while they’re pogo-ing.
Latest release?
Well, TECHNICALLY it’s their split earlier this year with Failure but the album I’ve been listening to all week was their full-length from last year Geezer, so let’s just focus one that. It’s, uh, it’s good. The opening breakdown to “Mustard Farm” is so incredibly catchy, like it should be in the next Britney Spears song or something.
