RED DONS:
Death to Idealism: CD
A couple of years ago—after the first Regulations record reminded me that there are still incredible bands who tour and release records—I began a frenzied hunt for any band that might fall under the “new-band-that-sounds-like-an-old-band” banner. This hunt eventually led me to The Observers, which in turn reminded me that my lifelong love affair with punk rock really had little to do with “thrashing” or “getting rad” or skulls with hats biting through skateboards; rather, it had everything to do with words and music that shook me to the core and haunted me long after the record had finished spinning. Red Dons, the new manifestation of The Observers, picks up pretty much right where that band left off. Death to Idealism, their first full length effort on the incredibly consistent Deranged Records, kicks the sincerity and conviction of its precursors up a notch while building on that mysterious, “exotic” vibe that these lads explored in a previous life. Just wow. –Dave Williams (Deranged)