NEW ALBUMS
TEKE::TEKE
Pile-driving mutant Japanese garage-rock
Shirushi KILL ROCK STARS
7/10
Teke::Teke are a genre-splicing firecracker, from the mordant fuzz overture of “Kala Kala” to the Tarantino-awaiting ’60s soundtrack melodrama of “Yoru Ni”. Damon Albarn’s East Asian adventures come to mind, as ska brass, aching Japanese enka balladry and lumbering riffs all find a home. Singer Maya Kuroki’s woozy, husky intimacies, meanwhile, rev into punk expectorations. “Meikyu” is the epic climax to this approach, jackhammer beats and surf swirl morphing into chamber-psychedelic guitar, before stampeding into an explosive brassand flute-flecked freakout. This would be a priceless actual Japanese psych 7”, and if Shirushi’s relentless momentum can leave you breathless, it batters its way into real, mutant rock’n’roll thrills.