Rush To Relax

Eddy Current Suppression Ring began in the aftermath of a Christmas work party in Melbourne, Australia. Four employees jammed as the party slowed; seven years later, they're opening for Devo. Not bad for a band who define their ambitions as "pretty low."



ECSR's third album, Rush To Relax is all over the rock 'n' roll map; surf-rock, '90s alt-rock and punk tied nicely together by the candid ramblings of Brendan Suppression. He doesn't sing so much as talk, much like an Aussie version of the Hold Steady's Craig Finn. It works well on songs like "Gentleman," a Pavement-esque ballad that would crumble under sentimentality without Suppression's unrefined delivery.



Underneath the mumbling Australian lies big, distorted guitar licks and enough snappy drum fills to tire even the great Muppet drummer Animal. The album's transition between punk-rock madness and mid-tempo melodies keeps Rush To Relax from getting redundant, and while you may have heard this sound before, it rarely sounds this good.

Goner http://www.goner-records.com