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The Netherland’s BGK, were one of the more well known European bands of their day. Staunchly DIY, possibly to a fault (admitting in MRR they’d rather keep prices down and lose money on tour, than raise them to break even), and incredibly idealistic and Utopian in their politcs, they still never managed to come off as obnoxious and douchey as MDC or whoever (at least to me). All that aside though, the reason I like BGK is because I find that they were exceptional song writers, especially for a straight up hardcore band, and I think this is perfectly evidenced on their debut lp Jonestown Aloha.

 It’s difficult to be a tuneful and catchy hardcore band without lapsing into overwhelmingly melodic songwriting (as in: Marginal Man, or more kindly, early Husker Du) and thus losing the edge that makes hardcore HARD in the first place, but BGK has a knack for this. Pretty much every song is a hum-able, toe-tapping hit, with the kind of simple and memorable riffs you’d expect from early Minor Threat, The Stains (SST), early Raw Power, etc. Tracks like Police Crimes, Arms Race, Spray Paint, Race Riot, all have instantly hum-able moments, but never tread into territory classifiable as “poppy”. Most of the songs take a pretty basic and fast 4/4 approach to things, but there are a few moodier slow pieces like Soylent Green that still keep the underlying melody, but have a more ominous, melancholy feel. I guess all in all, it’s a clash between the “return to songs” that the original punk bands heralded, and the “noise not music” aesthetic of the initial hardcore explosion. Tuneful noise? For a band where the vocalist only shouts, it’s surprising how many parts of it get lodged into your brain never to leave.