Track: Japanther - Battle of the Hopeless Crushes

By Joseph Rodriguez

A few weeks ago we told you about Japanther’s upcoming eighth studio LP Beets, Limes and Rice. At the time no audio was available from the LP, and it left me wondering what direction this Brooklyn punk duo would be headed in. Their last LP Rock ‘N’ Roll Ice Cream has been their most sentimental release to date. It retained the same punk melodies that Japanther are known for, but added acoustic guitars and female background vocals leaving the album feeling a little light in comparison to their previous material. “Battle of the Hopeless Crushes”, the first cut from the new LP is far from being anything light. They’ve jumped back a bit and channeled the energy and volume they used on Skuffed Up My Huffy and cranked it up a serious notch. I couldn’t even tell this was a Japanther song until the vocals came in. It’s a serious bruiser from the very beginning taking the speed and pop sensibilities of The Ramones and crossing it with the crushing volume of Black Sabbath.

JAPANTHER - BATTLE OF THE HOPELESS CRUSHES by SEAYOU

Beets, Limes and Rice will be out October 18th on Recess Records.