Neon Bastard

The debut release from some of the craziest New Zealanders this side of Peter Jackson, Meikhaus features more chaos, dissonance and overt belligerence than dudes dubbed "kiwis" should be able to dig up. Creating a volatile cocktail of extremities, the album's 11 songs barely reach out beyond the time necessary for a really good bowel movement, but in those 20something minutes, we hear the frenzy of Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Zeke-ish primal punk, the rumbling upheaval Death Breath have been milking lately and loads of fuzzed-out, Sabbath-meets-Sabbath cover band groove (read: decadent stoner rock). Capable of managing an inspirational pace, yet still dazzlingly hyperactive, tongue-in-cheek and thrilling, Meikhaus sounds almost as if Mike Patton channelled his spirit into something less snide and more appreciable on multiple levels while stealing some of the youthful energy of his hosts.