Hunx & His Punx - “Street Punk”

BY JACK DANIEL BETZ

Even since their tamer beginnings, Seth Bogart has gone for a rebellious punky aesthetic, but now his work matches his vision. “Street Punk” is a significant step up in volume for the band, and that’s probably a very good thing for their creative direction.

The debut “Too Young to be in Love” was cutesy, (as the name kind of suggests), full of doo-woppy drum beats and choruses, and rarely rose above a dull roar. It was a still a great start though, and it succeeded as vintage-inspired, throwback indie-pop. But the band name’s inclusion of “punx” sort of begs for a little more heat, and this album definitely delivers that.

“I’m coming back” is balls-to-the-wall Stooges punk. It’s the album’s biggest surprise. Not only is it fast and loud, it’s really unrestrained and aggressive, almost like a different band stepped in to back them. This song alone should dispel any suspicions of Hunx being a silly, ephemeral indie experiment. “Rat Bag” does the same, adding an element of stoner/sludge-metal growl.

One of the first things that listeners will notice when looking at the track listing, before they even play the record, is that the track times scream punk. Save for two tracks, no song goes over two minutes.

“It’s Not Easy” is the final song, (and one of those two longer tracks), and appropriately brings listeners back to the Americana-inspired sounds of the first record, although a bit louder, crunchier, re-imagining of that sound.