If It's Too Loud...

Photo via Facebook With Alexandra Eastburn leaving the band last year, Memphis's Nots decided to not replace her and stay a three-piece. They've also taken on a slightly new sound with the personnel change. While "Half Painted House" is still a noisy punk-ish song, it takes on this weird almost trippy feel. While Nots always have had a synth, post punk feel, this new song leans a bit more heavily in that direction. It's less aggressive, but still completely a Nots song. Not many bands can mellow out their sound a little and still be bad ass. Nots are one of the rare ones that can. You can listen to "Half Painted House" below. 3 , the new album from Nots, will be out May 10 on Goner Records. You can pre-order the album here . For more on Nots, check them out on Facebook  and Twitter . 3 by NOTS

While sulking that I had to miss Nots' show in Somerville last night, I stumbled onto the fact that they released a 7" back in June that I somehow missed completely. "Cruel Friend" is exactly what we expect, and want, from Nots. It's aggressive and fast post punk in the vein of Sonic Youth and Bikini Kill, but with an underlying groove throughout. The b-side, "Violence," is where things get interesting. It's much more synth heavy than what we've heard from Nots in the past. Before you start thinking that they're going all New Wave on us next, this is a much darker and foreboding song than most synth tracks. It's more along the lines of something from the It Follows  soundtrack with lyrics. You can listen to "Cruel Friend" below. The digital version of "Cruel Friend" and "Violence" can be purchased via Bandcamp . For more on Nots, follow them on Facebook and Twitter . "Cruel Friend" b/w "...

Whenever I see anything about Nots, I'm always surprised that they aren't from England and instead are from Nashville. Even though I know there are bands from Nashville besides country bands, you don't really expect there to be much of a post punk scene in Tennessee. Nots are this perfect combo of late 70s post punk groove and 90s art punk noise and riot aggression. I made the obvious comparison earlier by bringing up Sonic Youth and Bikini Kill, but that still stands. The album closer, "Entertain Me," is my favorite seven minute song I've heard in years. It's a noisy, badass epic. "Cosmetic" is a shorter song, but it's still filled with bursts of perfect noise. Cosmetic is a side of Nashville you're probably not familiar with, but you'll want to be.

Photo by Don Perry If my only complaint about "Entertain Me," the previous song from Nots' upcoming album Cosmetic , was that it was too short at seven minutes, imagine how I feel about their new under three minute song. But "Inherently Low" works at 2:52. It's a little more straightforward post-punk than "Entertain Me" was, while it still has some of the more spectacular Sonic Youth style noise that I've heard in over ten years. It's a pretty spectacular second song from what is shaping up to be an album of the year contender.  The second album from Memphis' Nots, Cosmetic, is due out on September 9 on Goner in the US and Heavenly Recordings in the UK. You can listen to "Inherently Low" below. For more information on Nots, check them out on Facebook . You can also pre-order Cosmetic on iTunes .

Photo by Don Perry Nots are probably the last band you'd expect to come out of Memphis. Their newest single, "Entertain Me," is a pure experimental post punk delight, the kind my wife referred to as "barely even music" last night. If you're looking for a comparison, Sonic Youth fronted by Bikini Kill is the obvious one here. Not only is Nots' sound comparable to these other two bands, but their politics also line up. According to lead vocalist/guitarist Natalie Hoffman: " The lyrics reflect the cyclical, distorted nature of the song, addressing different facets of the grotesque horror show going on in American politics and how they are portrayed- the rise of Trump, the reality-TV-like nature of American news, the almost-forced compliance of the viewer, and the for-profit-constructed 'right' of the viewer, the consumer, to require constant entertainment in order to participate, and to live." This might be the only seven minute song y...