CHINASKI
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CHINASKI

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Music

The best kept secret in music

Press


"Megaton Robotic Apple Pie (2005)"

EDITOR'S PICK: Named after a Charles Bukowski character, Chinaski writes clever indie rock tunes that draw attention to their Jesus Lizard influence. These days most people write off those great years when Jesus Lizard was busy writing amazing groove-heavy music grabbers as non-Nirvana events that we shouldn’t focus on. But Chinaski brings back the focus like a clever cameraman working for Stanley Kubrick. Mathematically precise and jazzy, with a smoky café guitar tone, they’re briskly basking in that retreating wave of past alternative music, when alternative actually meant something. - Smother.net


"Megaton Robotic Apple Pie (2005)"

CHINASKI have a downtempo, minor-key, crunchy sound that gives them a suitable aura of menace that works well with their indie-pop sensibilities. They seem to strangely border between indie-pop and grunge, and yet it sounds good, which is testament to good songwriting and their great use of minor chords to produce ear-pleasing and catchy riffs. - READ Magazine


"Megaton Robotic Apple Pie (2005)"

As befits their genre de choix CHINASKI absolutely love staccato sequences of minor chords, crunching them out on their guitars like an elephant stomping over countless packets of Snap, Crackle and Pop. Opener ‘Frontline’ sets the template for the album with said guitar work, punctuated and restless drumming, incessant tempo changes and CNN meets MTV meets PS2 informed lyrics that propound ‘Gaza to the West, Ramallah to the East….Running through the mine field, RPG in hand / Aiming for the indolent pretender also-ran / Bent girders on the ground, sheepherders on the sky / Welcome to the homeland, now secure yourself to die.” While the majority of the lyrics seek out the negatives, musically they offer a surprisingly high ratio of positive melodies within their musical Molotov cocktail that is far more West Coast and blue skies. In fact they’re not particularly heavy in a metal kind of way, serving up that kind of bright rock sound that is more akin to the Chilli Peppers and Janes Addiction as opposed to the subterranean riff-mongering of the likes of Sabbath who they cite as an influence. ‘Highway 61’, one of the album’s stand out tracks, the acoustic ‘One More Lie’ and the album’s final brace of ‘There Is A Place’ and ‘Weight Of The World’ extend this refined sound to include the mature rockisms of Bob Mould - with whose voice Bruce Lomet’s vocals has distinct parallels - both the solo artist and in his work with Sugar. - Whisperin & Hollerin


"You Might Like This Better Than Me (2001)"

"Stark, minimal, direct; the album kicks off with the power bass groove of "I Will." Immediately establishing the script for the album: intelligent lyricism, no-frills musicality, and a straight shot directly into the listener. This utilitarian aggregation has intriguing hints of jazz around the edges; the band has a propensity for unusual time signatures, unexpected rhythmic turns, and drop-dead endings. Standout songs include the neo-psychedelic "C.V.R.," enhanced by spoken word narration "This is your captain speaking," the singer intones, "I'll see you on the ground"; The jazz-inflected "Our Song" featuring a swampy breakdown; the stunning "Hollywood" - featuring a hypnotic, polyrhythmic pulse throughout, evoking the seamy boulevards lined with tattered palm trees and cold neon." - Dan Kimpel (sunsetstripradio.com) - sunsetstripradio.com


"Megaton Robotic Apple Pie (2005)"

Between all of the albums that were forwarded to me during Music Underwater’s hiatus, I was the most excited about this one. Jesus Lizard influence? Early 90’s alternative rock sound? This could not fail, because this is the sort of rock I loved so much that nobody was fucking playing. To expand, the press release declares that Chinaski has “the threatening crunch of Sabbath, the spring-coil tightness and groove of the Jesus Lizard, and the atmospherics of the Doors.” Not only that, but the album is called Megaton Robotic Apple Pie. How cool is that?

As far as openers go, they sure as hell deliver on the prospects they raised in those comparisons. “Frontline” is a killer, frantic, and heavy piece of rock mayhem. Just listen to the lyrics - “Strappin’ on the semtex, driving in the nails/Running to the bus stop to catch a ride to Hell/God fearers to the left, scene-stealers to the right/Smile for the camera, babe, you’re looking dynamite.” Does that not epitomize rock or what? There’s something laughably absurd about the imagery “Frontline” presents, just as there’s something sinister, and everything falls into a weird sort of place that’s been missing from pure rock albums. It’s as tongue-in-cheek as it is brutal, and that’s the way to suck somebody in. You never know what to expect.

“Trouble” starts out slow, but throttles into a killer chorus of “You can’t stop me now!” It may not be completely original, but it’s a hell of a lot more fun to listen to than The Arcade Fire. Singer Bruce Lomet’s passionate vocals make the most clichéd line of lyrical angst sound as threatening as the devil’s music of old. This ain’t Linkin Park, kiddies. “Numbered Days” calls Fugazi, “Whiskey Song” is a funk-tinged slaughterhouse of sludge (with the album’s catchiest chorus), and “Highway 61” hits the album’s rolling, guitar-driven peak.

The entire first half of Megaton Robotic Apple Pie is so strong, so full of nonstop rock pieces that the second half pales a bit in comparison. “One More Lie” is a noble attempt at an acoustic-driven number, and when it gets heavy near the end, it’s a flawless transition that separates these boys from the Finger Elevens on the world. “What You Wanted” is pure math-rock, and while “Tijuana” picks things up a tad, only the explosive closer “Weight of the World” matches the intensity of the album’s first half.

For anybody who’s looking to hear an album that just isn’t afraid to rock out, Chinaski will meet your expectations, and for the first bits, exceed them tremendously. Check it out, rock crusaders.

- Music Underwater


Discography

You Might Like This Better Than Me (2001)
Megaton Robotic Apple Pie (2005)

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

CHINASKI is a literary character created by Charles Bukowski. He valued alcohol and the madmen and women of the world. He lived to create and illuminate the underbelly of Los Angeles. Disgusted with the mundane and conventional people surrounding him, he left his readers with a cleansing honesty. That honesty is reflected in the music of this band.

On their newest CD "megaton robotic apple pie", LA based indie-rock heroes CHINASKI deliver another infectious, signature album with crunchy low end guitars, interwoven bass lines, and thunderous drumming. With wide-ranging influences and qualities explained by the band as, "the threatening crunch of Sabbath, the spring-coil tightness and groove of the Jesus Lizard, and the atmospherics of the Doors," the band reaches far beyond the typical rock genre to a place that can only be understood through sound.

The songs on the album range from the darkly jazz-inflected groove of "There Is A Place" featuring Lomet's dramatic vocal presence, the angular and explosively blues-tinged "Highway 61", the strummy and harmony-laden "One More Lie", and the aggressive driving darkness and operatic fury of "Frontline."

The massive low end of their sound comes from the chunky bottom of Cudahy's guitar, paired with McCoy’s bass lines, and anchored by Weinstein's sinewy drumming. It's a sonic foundry of thick guitars and pounding rhythms set off by a straight-shooting lead vocal. CHINASKI rocks with more power and finesse than bands twice their size and wattage, which when all is said and done, really is the bottom line.

Combining the driving rhythms and guitar barrage of early 90's alternative rock with a song-writing style that falls just left of the mainstream, CHINASKI has a simple approach to rock… that rock itself shouldn't be so simple.

Album available @ www.cdbaby.com/chinaski2