Twisted Teens - Twisted Teens (CD) (Digipak)

New Orleans-based punk band Twisted Teens shirk genre conventions on their chaotic, energetic, and wildly creative new record, diving into surprising thematic territory and securing them as one of the most original bands in the contemporary DIY punk scene. It's an eros-fueled adrenaline rush full of esoteric references and genre-defying twists, and listening to it feels like bursting out of cold soil on a warm spring day. Fans of Raw Power-era Stooges, Eastern mysticism, or the punk-to-country pipeline should tuck in. (Yes, it's as chaotic as it sounds.) Fronted and masterminded by prolific DIY musician and songwriter Cas P. Ian (the same person behind well-known folk-punk band Blackbird Raum), Twisted Teens' lineup includes acoustic and electric guitar, pedal steel, drums, bass, and keys. For this record, Cas P. Ian (credited elsewhere as CPN, Caspian, and C-SPAN) collaborated with pedal steel player RJ Santos. The two appear together in a tintype photo on the album cover. Drummer Magnus Nymo (Blackbird Raum, FORK, Lyngfarer, Regn) and keyboardist Cameron Snyder feature on one track each - "something I haven't told ya" (co-written by Nymo) and "rando," respectively. From a foundation of old-school rock 'n' roll, the 11-song collection pinballs between punk subgenres - proto-punk, post-punk, surf punk - while also incorporating elements of country, folk, electronic music, and even pop. But fans of saccharine pop or traditional country are unlikely to find anything too comforting on this record. As Cas P. Ian puts it, "I wanted to make something that felt like a garage rock record but [...] is definitely not a garage rock record." -Dana Yewbank