Underground Screams / 2003 Asian Man Records / 26 Tracks / http://www.asianmanrecords.com

Most compilations I usually don’t review for InterStitial/NeuFutur due to the fact that the bands compiled are the acts at the top of their game, and as such, don’t need my help. However, Asian Man here has compiled a vast collection of independent bands that would love any help they get, and placed it at a price that individuals will want to buy it. The Common Place’s “Lie Awhile” starts off with an extremely bouncy beat, and could not be any more perfect to start off a compilation such as this. Slightly slower in tempo, “Long Way Home” by The National Pastime is much more musically sound, with a number of different time signatures utilized and a set of vocals that almost seem too high-pitched for the track. Much more low key than the prior tracks mentioned in the room, “All Bad News” by The Swayback really is more a carbon copy of a Dead Kennedys song than a new composition, but where X lacks in originality, they really gain back by rocking out hard. 9Miles2Go has probably both the most radio-friendly and most addictive track on this compilation in their “The Things”, as it has an Simple Plan-style opening with a Weezer-style chorus, all blended together to make something much more solid and grin-inducing than their component parts. Hey, and wait, I thought ska died! You and me both, but Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution really put my speakers aflame with their ska/surf medley that has almost as much experimentation with instruments and time signatures as 2. Pick up this disc, and be amazed by some of the bands that are only really known in their local scene – well, only known in their local scene until Underground Screams came out!

Top Track(s) : 9Miles2Go “The Things“