RAGE MONSTERS

THE BEVERLEYS

Brutal The Beverleys’ angsty, up-front vocals and rough, forceful live show make them a perfect fit for Buzz Records. With labelmates Greys, they share the influence of bands like Nirvana and Hot Snakes, while their erratic, noisy, anxiety-driven darkness often evokes HSY. The Beverleys are at their best at their loudest, as evidenced by the vicious “Hush.” The vocals can be sweet like the Breeders, but more often they’re snarling, abrasive and at times, whiny. They mix melody and volume like Dilly Dally, but the Beverleys often feel like their badass older sisters; while Dilly Dally might skip class to smoke pot, the Beverleys are out messing shit up, setting stuff on fire. They merge grunge, punk and even classic pop punk, as on “Visions” and the slinky, sliding “Hoodwink,” where delicate guitar touches serve as a nice contrast to the grimy power chord shredding and kicking rhythm. The band have called their sound “junk punk,” as it suggests simultaneously not caring and caring a lot, and claim to favour emotion foremost. That sounds about right; Brutal is volatile and trashy as much as it is steady and sincere. (Buzz, buzzrecords.ca)

HOW DID YOU DECIDE ON GRUNGE PUNK TO CHANNEL YOUR ANGST?

Guitarist/vocalist Susan Burke: I liked Nirvana as a kid because it was like the Beatles, but fuzzed-out and heavy. Melody is number one for me, so blending in a pop sensibility helped us put a little lasso around all our messiness. Guitarist Joanna Lund: I didn’t actually get into grunge until later on. I didn’t get really angry until I turned 30. Drummer Steph Lund: We didn’t even realize we had all that anger in us. Playing relieves so much stress and tension, though. We didn’t start with the intention of playing any one genre. What came out first was very slow and loud, but dreamy and droney. After a while, we were like, “This is boring, let’s play this faster.”

HOW DOES ANXIETY DRIVE YOU TO SUCCEED?

Burke: You feel like you need to do more. I need to be a better guitar player. I practice like crazy lately, worrying my punk-ass skills aren’t enough anymore. That kind of energy, that psychological darkness, is where all these songs come from. S. Lund: This is the hardest job I’ve ever had. It’s physically, mentally and emotionally exhausting. LISA SOOKRAJ