Choke!!!

Writing about Slug yesterday reminded me of yet another band that happily embraced the idea of a two bass player set up called Milkmine. The difference being is that Milkmine relied only on bass and a drummer. Unfortunately I don't know much else about the band other than that they were on Choke Records, who also released their one and only album (as far as I know) titled Braille in 1994 which was quickly forgotten due to the label eventually going under. So really, any help to learning a bit more history about this band or if there were any projects after Milkmine, would be gladly appreciated. The all to short of existence of this band makes it sort of difficult.

Regardless, Braille is pretty much everything you would expect coming from arsenal such as this. A bit more playful and lighthearted than most would probably foresee out of a sound like this. The emphasis is focused more on the drumming really in my opinion, it seems to be the obvious driving force throughout the record as opposed to the dual bass. Quite a nice chunk of loudly played dirge rock.

Milkmine - Earl Campbell [MP3]
Milkmine - Loddy [MP3]

Sadly, since the label is no more that means the album itself is out of print. However, like most forgotten gems, you can purchase it used through sites like eBay or Amazon for practically pennies. So give it a shot.

Sticking with Choke, the label also housed at one time one of my favorite bands, Craw. Releasing their first two albums Craw and Lost Nation Road, both of which were produced by Steve Albini. I fell in love with this band as soon as I first heard them due to the sheer unconventional approach to song writing they undertook with each record. Not until their last record Bodies for Strontium 90, would they release something that was even borderline accessible to the standard hard rock listener. An amazing band that mixed in so many different ideas, featuring some highly odd riff changes and the maniacal vocals of singer Joe McTighe. Craw were one of the few bands that I really honestly liked going through the lyrics and reading them, as they were so entirely different as to anything I'd ever seen used in music like this. You could say that Craw was maybe a thinking mans approach to the post-hardcore suite. An amazing band. I strongly urge anyone to take a listen.

Craw - Drugs [MP3]
Craw - I Disagree (And Here's Why) [MP3]
Craw - Sound of Every Promise [MP3]
Craw - My Sister's Living Room [MP3]

Anyway, thanks to the band knowing that the majority of their material is long since out of print, they have for awhile been offering up all their albums down-loadable for free over at their website. You can still however purchase Bodies for Strontium 90 over at Hydrahead, because having the real thing is always better. The other, you'll once again have to do some digging through used outlets.