VVs and ZZZs

The two top bands in California with nonsensical repeated consonants are doing some shows together and I for one am kind of excited. If there was a third band doing this (there probably is, but for this post let's pretend it's just these two) Entertainment Weekly might write about it as a charticle or something. I digress, both bands are good.

WAVVES are from San Diego (home of The Soft Pack and Chino Farm) and are really more of an "is" — basically one dude, Nathan Williams, who has no shortage of tunesn (many of which contain the word "goth" in the title), releasing two albums (last year's Wavves on Woodsist and the forthcoming Wavvves on Fat Possum) and load 7"s in rapid-fire fashion. It's catchy stuff once you get past the wall of distortion — there is seeming no recorded sound that, to Williams, doesn't sound better when the record levels are pegged into the red. Even when listening at '3' these records sound loud.

MP3: Wavves – Wavves (from Wavves, buy it)
MP3: Wavves – So Bored (from Wavvves out March 17)

NODZZZ, on the other hand, are from San Francisco and only have one song to date longer than two minutes. They play nasally, bratty punk that often gets them compared to The Dead Milkmen and I'll admit that's the first thing I thought of when I first heard them. Not blatantly jokey like the Milkmen, they're songs are nonetheless kinda funny, catchy, and over before they even get close to annoying. I prefer NODZZZ to WAVVES (yes, both spell their names with all-caps), at least on record. Speaking of records, their debut on What's Your Rupture is available on vinyl and digitally only.

MP3: NODZZZ – Is She There? (buy it)
MP3: NODZZZ – I Don't Wanna (Smoke Marijuana)

The NYC area has four opportunites to catch WAVVES and NODZZZ together (with Woods and Blank Dogs too). Here's the details:

Feb 5 Vassar College – Mathew’s Mug w/ Woods     Vassar, New York
Feb 6 Market Hotel w/ Blank Dogs, Woods, Nodzzz, Gary War     Brooklyn, New York
Feb 7 LessArtistsMoreCondos w/ Blank Dogs, Woods, Nodzzz, Gary War     Brooklyn, New York
Feb 8 UnderGround Lounge w/ Blank Dogs     New York, New York