YOUNG GOVERNOR:
Pizza Face: 7”
Ben Cook’s in that elite group of songwriters who have unassailable punk roots, who haven’t completely abandoned what they learned at an early age, haven’t divorced themselves from edgy, dark, fast beginnings, and are still exploring. How does someone continue to make music without just repeating themselves, yet they’re instantly recognizable? It’s a mystery that Mark Ryan (Mind Spiders), Jeff Burke (Potential Johns), Greg Cartwright (Reigning Sound) and Alicja Trout (River City Tanlines) are also unraveling. So, after a small raft of records (7”s, 10”, LP, Marvelous Darlings output), it’s safe to say that if Ben Cook’s manning the steering wheel, it’s worth a listen and worth the ride. This originally came out as a super-limited lacquer; now it’s a Japanese import. But there’s one caution. Listening to music this good—soak in it, let it permeate—will make you start shelving other records that you thought were passable. Here’s to asking more of your music. –Todd Taylor (SP, sp-records.com)