Rating: NNNN
Formed in 2017 from the ashes of Sackville, New Brunswick’s beloved Kappa Chow, with members of Pure Pressure and Tough Age (full disclosure: a band I play drums in), scuzzy neo-proto-punk quartet Protruders have earned admirers throughout the international underground circuit.
Poison Future is their vinyl debut after four self-released cassettes, and its production from analog wizard Peter Woodford of Montreal’s Bottle Garden studio wipes off a few layers of the group’s earlier lo-fi murk to create the strongest distillate of their sound. Protruders’ core duo of guitarist Joe C and stand-up drummer Ilse K trade off vocal duties as their songs spiral from catchy caveman garage rock into no wave nihilism and hallucinogenic psych-punk from the school of Sonic Youth’s Bad Moon Rising.
Their maniacal modus operandi is revealed on the opening title track, with gravel-gargling vocals in the vein of Cleveland’s infamous electric eels and free-jazz freakouts from saxophonist James Goddard. Tax 101 and Hydrophytol are Protruders at their hookiest, while the six-minute Wrong Way Sign opens into an expansive instrumental outro like a lost Velvet Underground bootleg. The album closes with its straightest moments on the jangly disharmonies of Fruit Hang as they holler words of wisdom on proudly bucking trends: “Let the fruit hang low / Hold your head up high / You can sit there and taunt me / But I will just take it in stride.”
Stubbornly defying modern practices, with home-dubbed cassettes instead of streaming services and photocopied zines in the place of social media, Protruders offer an artistic antidote by ignoring the poisons of the future entirely.
Top track: Poison Future
Protruders play the Monarch Tavern on Thursday (May 2). See listing.
