Evergreen (reissue) by Evergreen

Formed from the ashes of Louisville legends Cinderblock in the early 90s and boasting a revolving line-up that would make Spinal Tap blush, Evergreen solidified in 1993 when Britt Walford (Slint, The Breeders, The For Carnation) joined on drums. A tight mix of percussive guitars, strolling, funky bass and relentlessly catchy drum beats escalated the drunken vocal sways of Sean McLoughlin to immeasurable heights. Equally inspired by Fugazi, Television and The Stooges, Evergreen was a breath of fresh air that only Louisville folks were really ready to breathe. While the rest of the world was too busy going ape shit over increasingly soulless faux-jazz, Evergreen were throwing down party-punk jams to tear the roof down and/or get them arrested for public indecency and disturbing the peace (but that's another story for another time). Recorded in brilliant stereophonic mid-fi by James Murphy (of the DFA), this album seemed like a throwback in 1995. Oddly, it now feels more at home soaring above the increasingly soulless faux-garage rock revival. When all is said and done and you are left with nothing but the music to tell the story, it's damned near impossible to tell when this record was made and it's even harder to care. It's truly a timeless classic that has always deserved more attention than it has gotten. This reissue includes two bonus tracks not included on the original release.