The Owen Guns stick to their signature concoction of brash, loud, hilarious, and old school on Ep 2 Electric Boogaloo.
Hardcore punk outfit The Owen Guns are many things. Epic? Yes. Loud? Yes. Entertaining? Of course. Reserved? Absolutely not. Their most recent full-length Ep 2 Electric Boogaloo takes shots at just about everything, from inept politicians to toilet paper hoarders.
As the boys say, it’s “raw and messy with zero fucks given. Just how punk should be”.
Ep 2 opens with heavy distortion and a ripping guitar lick straight outta the 80s. Thrusting the listener right in, the lead vocalist barely takes a breath as he dishes out blasphemies left and right. The track closes with a drum buildup, as the group chant, “I don’t wanna die”. But The Owen Guns are only getting started.
Expert in a Minor Threat Shirt is the next standout. A cuckoo clock followed by intro count in, “1 2 – fuck you”, is so goddamn funny it could have fit snugly into a The Chats song – if only they’d thought of it first.
To the sound of thrashing drums and chugging electrics, the band take aim at a punk rock gatekeeper, sporting a Minor Threat shirt. Punk aficionados will love the reference, but it’s also a statement about one of the band’s key influences, who they’re clearly sporting with pride.
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Speaking of influences, Just Being with You by the Hard-Ons is covered in this full-length. It’s a faithful rendition with the chorus backing vocals intact, and the driving 4/4 rock keeping things steady.
Is This Punk? mocks Queen’s iconic stomp-stomp-clap on We Will Rock You, before catapulting into a boozy anthem about The Owen Gun’s place in the music scene. Following a guitar solo, the band answer their own question: “No One Cares!”
Closer track Everything’s Fucked is the most punk track on the entire record, and that’s saying something. It’s the perfect blend of old school tongue-in-cheek and daunting realism, for a world that has spun entirely awry. The woozy breakdown is a great touch, too.
Score a CD of Ep 2 Electric Boogaloo here, or stream the record below.
