Abe Vigoda

by Eddie Robson

Ever thought punk would be better if it was more tropical?

"Abe Vigoda have been dubbed ‘tropical punk’. This is a silly name. However, it does fit."

Abe Vigoda are a Los Angeles punk band. Think you know what they sound like? Think again. Where most LA punk in recent years has been of the skater-kid/Clash-style ska-inflected/hardcore variety, Abe Vigoda work from different reference points – gamelan records, ‘Isn’t Anything’-era My Bloody Valentine, the demented pop of Dan Deacon – and so, whilst they do bear the more familiar punk and dub influences, it all comes out sounding totally different.

Abe Vigoda have been dubbed ‘tropical punk’. This is a silly name. However, it does fit: there’s some curious common ground here with El Guincho, whose excellent new album gets its official UK release on the same day as Abe Vigoda’s LP ‘Skeleton’. Their music also bridges the gap between trad LA punk and the resurgent stoner-rock scene up the coast, exemplified by the likes of Wooden Shjips: whilst they have a raw punk edge, they also have a blissful side and the overall tone is positive (they realised that it was more fun to play that way and stuck with it), like At The Drive-In in an uncommonly good mood. This is the central tension which, very effectively, drives their music.

Named, presumably, for the character actor who was in The Godfather, Abe Vigoda have been going for four years and appear to have scarcely wasted a single second. They’ve done two things which, to all intents and purposes, look like albums, but according to the press release for ‘Skeleton’ they weren’t because this is their first ‘proper’ one. They’ve been gigging like maniacs and, judging from the new record, that work is paying off.

‘Skeletons’ is a head-spinning, bewildering record which sounds very fresh. Wriggling riffs tumble over rattling beats on ‘Bear Face’, white noise cuts across the sonic palate like a feedback sorbet on ‘Whatever Forever’, and on ‘Live-Long’ they sound, not for the first time, like they’re about to collapse completely but just pull themselves back from the brink. ‘Lantern Heights’, ‘Cranes’ and ‘The Garden’, meanwhile, would almost be radio friendly if you could hear the lyrics (they’re not big on lyric audibility). The final trio show them at their best, from the melancholy soundscape of ‘Visi Rings’ through the knotted rhythms of ‘Endless Sleeper’ which give way to a cathartic release, then to the manic title track.

Best of all, Abe Vigoda’s multilayered arrangements and control of what seems like near-chaos marks them out as a smart band. You get the distinct impression that they’re more than capable of evolving and mutating their sound. This is a band to keep tabs on.

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