SMUT PEDDLERS- 'Ten Inch' 10" PRESS

www.odysseyzine.com (Smut Peddlers "Ten Inch" 10", Dead Beat Records)
Ten Inches of vinyl and eight verbose, abusive, scorching punk rock songs that combine hardcore with devil-horned guitar virtuosity. It makes one want to dig out the skateboard like the Faction, but it has the downright terrible attitude of the Dwarves, and sleazy, California underground storytelling that would make Bruce Craven sit down and cry with Greg Ginn. It's the type of stuff you'd need to hear after waking up on the floor in a sweltering room, still drunk, with the acrid taste of some unidentified drug on your tongue, and warm, flat beer is dripping on your forehead.

DEEP FRY BONANZA (Smut Peddlers- 'Ten Inch' 10", Dead Beat Records)
So, Smogtown broke up and I'm pissed. They were one of my favorite punk bands of the last ten years or so and the fuckers never stopped smoking up long enough to drag their asses to the East Coast to play some shows, and now all I've got are these lousy records to remind me of the band that once was. So, I'm sitting around moping about this sad, sad fact and I decide to put in the latest promo from Dead Beat Records, the very people who first introduced me to Smogtown via their debut 10-inch record. Eerily, this record is a 10-inch as well, and if I didn't know better I would say that the Smut Peddlers had kidnapped Smogtown, held them in an undisclosed location and refused to release them until they recorded their latest EP, the very EP I am currently listening to.
I swear, every single thing that made me love Smogtown is here (by the way, I should note that I think the Smut Peddlers have actually been around since before Smogtown formed, but Mr. Unhip Moi is only just now hearing about them): the neo-Descendents riffs, the incredible vocals, the even better lyrics and the tempos that don't bother fucking around for a single second. In case you forgot, this is punk rock, people. You remember, back when the word meant something that was intellectually stimulating,unapologetically confrontational and intense as all fuck.
The only complaint I could possibly come up with this absolutely heavenly slab of wax is that the politics are a little more conservative that I find comfortable. "State of the State", in particular, sounds like a recruitment anthem for the Punk Rock Republican Youth. But fuck if I'm going to stop listening to a band because they don't have politics; after all, does that mean I'm going to stop listening to the FU's because they're too conservative or the Dicks because they're too liberal? Fuck no, those bands rule and so do the Smut Peddlers!
So, excuse me while I hit my local record store and try to track down every single note this band has recorded. Yeah, they're that good, and if you fucking hate emo and metalcore I think it‚s a reasonable bet that you'll feel exactly the same way. (Daniel Lupton)

THE SMUT PEDDLERS Ten Inch - Dead Beat Records
Being relatively familiar with the Orange County beach punk scene, this record was right up my alley. Suburban angst, drug use, disgust, black humor, and skateboarding all coalesce nicely to form a pretty representative picture of what it's like down there. I'm sure some of my friends grew up with these characters. If you liked The Vandals, D.I., Aggression, M.I.A., The Cadillac Tramps, or more recently, The Stitches, The Huns, and The U.S. Bombs you're sure to enjoy this as well. The no-bullshit allowed lyrics are frank, down to earth, actually really funny, and delivered with sincere conviction. Singer John Ransom has a way with words and is an able storyteller/singer who populates his songs with real people that you know or at least know their type. The first song "Dead End" is one of those well-intentioned warnings to someone going through the old drug wringer (again) that's got little specific details about rehab, prescription drugs, and shitty addict behavior that's painfully real without being judgmental. Like I said, you probably have met the guy or his twin if you aren't the guy himself. "Renegade" is a classic punker outlaw tune along the lines of The Vandals "The Legend of Pat Brown" about a hard-drinkin' crankhead bank robber. Another song "Weaverville Woman" paints a vivid picture of another living breathing human being, and one that I'd like to meet. "Rebatron Party" is a tongue in cheek party song about the latest experimental Hepatitis C cure. "State of the State" is a politically incorrect but absolutely true complaint about what's wrong in (mostly Southern) California, and "Bums On The Street" is another dead on the money diatribe about the proliferation of homeless in the "Sunshine State". Almost all of the songs have a great classic second wave punk feel to them, with the exception of the last one "Guess It's So", which is considerably slower than the rest and probably could have been dropped but overall this is a good fun record (obvious hometown prejudice acknowledged). This is the shit that should have been made into a T.V. show called "The O.C.". --- The Swede 8/11

GREEN HELL (GERMANY) (SMUT PEDDLERS- TEN INCH 10", Dead Beat)
Eight new pieces from the smut peddlers, which confirm the super impression of the predecessor 'ism' loosely and sound similarly brachial and great. the sound is still coined/shaped by the pissed/angry and powerful short songs between snotty punk and driving, pressurful old school california hc. In addition singer John Ransom uses clever wording to describe cynical stories of the american dream/nightmare, speaks homeless people, drugs, parties, jails and the self chosen outsiders. the two guitar front with sean and roger spread increase rock n roll licks, but everthing in the mentioned frame. gish on bass and julia on drums fill the remainder properly and give the songs the power which make songs like "dead end" "off the wagon" and "rebatron party" really official hits.

MORLOCK (FRANCE) (SMUT PEDDLERS- TEN INCH 10", DEAD BEAT)
As the title says, this 10 inches will be avalaible in vinyl only. This is the shortest from the newest releases from Dead Beat, but it's also the most powerful. Production is very well done, and one can feel the energy on both sitdes of this record. This is a punk/hardcore mix, influenced by brit punk sound (and I like it very much), and it's up to a good US Bombs record. 6 greatly enjoyable songs.

Dotdash.com (Smut Peddlers- Ten Inch 10" EP, Dead Beat Records)
The Smut Peddlers play beach punk in the tradition of the Crowd and the Stitches. So if you like that kind of stuff, you’ll dig this. I never thought I would hear a song about Hepatitis C treatment, but now I have. Thanks guys I’ll be sure to let Pamela Anderson know there’s hope after all. (TROY CANADY)

ALAN WRIGHT- FREE LANCE WRITER (Smut Peddlers "Ten Inch" 10", DeadBeat)
This is the CDR promo version of a ten-inch vinyl release, hence the title. I've gotten other releases by this band and thought they were pretty good, but this new one is really good. It's less hardcore speed-crazy than previous stuff I've heard, more midtempo and more rock and roll sounding. The production is way more amped up, too. I think the fact that they have a new guitarist has something to do with the change in sound as well. Sean "The Duck" Mallard rips out great tasty rhythm/lead work with a much thicker, meatier sound than anything I've heard before by the Smut Peddlers. John Ransom spits out acidic, straight-to-the-point lyrics, commenting on everything from Hepatitis C ("Rabatron Party"),to the apparent fucked-up-ness of California ("State Of The State"). Excellent punk rock here, folks. (Alan Wright)

UNCLE DAN'S HOUSE OF SMUT (Smut Peddlers- Ten Inch 10" Dead Beat 2003)
On paper, this seems like a no-brainer perfect match--Uncle Dan's House of Smut and the Smut Peddlers. After all, purveyors of smut gotta stick together, right? Well, what's the verdict? After consulting with my ears, I can confirm that Ten Inch does indeed rock like mad. You could say the Smut Peddlers are somewhat akin to the Supersuckers, without the country and western leanings--this is even more traditionally punk than that, though. Specifically, the Smut Peddlers have something going on in their music reminiscent of Black Flag's "T.V. Party." These elements all blend nicely and the results are really damn good. The songwriting here is just as dirty as the band's sound. Yeah, it's dirty but not stupid by any means. Things get a little political on "State Of The State," while hepatitis gets the once over on "Rebatron Party." On that song, the Smut Peddlers turn lyrical couplets such as "say goodbye to the life of crime/up the dose of heptazyme." In a way, it's all darkly comedic while making clear these folks aren't messing around, either. So, yes, the Smut Peddlers get the Uncle Dan's House of Smut stamp of approval. There's always room at my table for stuff that rocks and this certainly does. If rockin' is what you're looking for, yourself, this one's for you--score at will.

NOW WAVE (Smut Peddlers- Ten Inch 10" EP, Dead Beat Records)
I think this is the fourth release by this So Cal band, and it's really good. Right when it started, I couldn't help but think "U.S. Bombs" the whole time. I'm not saying they totally sound like 'em or anything; just sometimes the way the singer's voice throws around reminds me of Duane Peters. One thing I totally dug about this were the lyrics! A lot of 'em are damn funny. This thing is good the whole way through. I totally dig this! It makes me want to go out and find some of their previous releases. If you haven't heard the Smut Peddlers before, just think early So Cal stuff like D.I. and Adolescents mixed with stuff like U.S. Bombs---with a more rock n' roll feel! GREAT STUFF! (Ian MacDougall)