Zxspecky - One Size Too Small, Blue

Author

Paul Lindsay

Published

Monday 25th February

A ZXSPECKY is lingo for those in the know of a computer produced in the 1980s known as a ZX Spectrum 8 Bit computer but probably for most astute local Perth music enthusiasts a ZXSPECKY is a punk band from Perth. Forget angular haircuts, black Atticus t-shirts, their tattoos (if they have any) won’t be of different coloured stars up and down their arms. Forget screaming or growling these aren’t pussy western suburbs rich kids whose parents bought them a Gibson Les Paul for Christmas without the lessons to go with it. This isn’t a band whose members’ houses overlook the ocean and sing about how crap life is but in reality they don’t know how good they’ve got it! Yes some will argue that punk has evolved on from ZXSPECKY’s sound into a more epic sound that has encompassed other genres – but evolution is just a theory and not one in certain instances that this reviewer readily subscribes to!

ZXSPECKY’s new album One Size Too Small, Blue, sums up everything that is good about punk music but has been long forgotten: songs that are barely two minutes, plenty of swearing and adult content to make the hardest of sailors blush, wry humour, and lyrics that get to the point quicker than a sawed-off shot gun shell. One Size Too Small, Blue covers a range of subjects from re-hydrated food, morning birds that wake you up, biting social commentary about music culture that couldn’t be more true, bad dating experiences, and they take a sledgehammer to the music industry. Punk bands like ZXSPECKY are around but tragically aren’t as widely known as what they should be. Maybe it’s because it’s the direction in which punk has gone, as their track M. Flash from their album sums up, “gonna get us a new ‘net presence, with some hi-res three dimensional art done by some local legend turned who’s turned his hand to design work. Gonna refer to our being the best in terms of geography. Gonna garner respect from those who don’t like that sort of thing.”

Or an even better example from the track The Instrumental At The Start of Your Set Sucks Arse (I’ve Got Something For Your Lead Singer), “the instrumental at the start of your song sucks arse. Some find it preferential to your work with words, some find it preferential to stay at home and save their hair.” “For nights with the rest of the world in tow at the not so local local where where the locals just don’t go.” ZXSPECKY are a technically and lyrically smart band and the brilliant results speak for themselves. One Size Too Small, Blue is a continuation of a long line of bands that are trying to keep alive all that is true and good about punk with it’s wit and vigour that is slowly being lost to a scene of soulless image conscious clones.