When Weegee’s self-released tape dropped last year, a small cadre of New York City’s finest sat up, fixed their hair and paid close attention. We’re not talking coppers, we’re talking rockers. Out of nowhere (Brooklyn/Queens), came this lumbering beast with a fresh kill between its teeth. Listening to Primitive Thrill, the darkside walkers recognized the skill and artistry on display, and the little green demon reared its ugly head. Who wouldn’t be envious of this exquisite debut, so completely assured in its crushed-velvet luxury and elevated aura of desperation and mortality—a Technicolor take on an iconic photo by the band’s namesake. Like a black cat on a windowsill, Weegee’s songs stretch out at their own pace, by turns languid, tense, enveloping. There is a patience at play that is rarely heard in the trash rock gutter that Weegee calls home. Courtesy of a new mix and master, the vinyl edition of Primitive Thrill, out on Dot Dash Sounds, is now even more widescreen—a landscape to get truly, willingly lost in.
“Followed By Memories” jumps off with the kind of lowdown swing that the Scientists utilized so devastatingly. The duel (sic) vocals from guitarist Julie Congo and drummer Mike Rekevics are just the wind-up to a knockout sax solo delivered by John Rekevics. Is it still a family affair if someone doesn’t make it out alive? This is brandished switchblade music, an edge looking for something soft to bury itself in. Shimmying like the Devil himself is coming to collect, “Spellbound” is the kind of track they put on in an old biker movie before all hell breaks loose. And here it is in 4k. “Bad Feeling” is the closest any NYC band has gotten to the elusive Bad Moon Rising vibe to date. It only took 40 years, but Sonic Youth has been dead for over a decade and Weegee is here to redeem us all. The title track kicks in and the knife is at your throat again. You can’t help but swallow, if only to feel the steel and satisfy your desire for a knick. These are primitive thrills—acknowledged, indulged.
On the subject of thrills, we have yet to namecheck Adam Kastin’s remarkable Fender Twin excursions with the six strings that draw blood. Somewhere under a cloud of spectral cigarette smoke, Roland S. Howard is smiling because he knows his legacy is in capable hands. Very few bands have ever been able to replicate the enticing glamor and black lung romance that was inherent to Howard’s post-Birthday Party group, These Immortal Souls. But very few bands are Weegee and they are made of bone and still breathe. “Maybe I’m Blind” is Congo’s expedition, leading the group on a breathy walkabout dirge, like a death rock Hope Sandoval. Halfway through the journey, she expels a growl/groan and Kastin’s guitar spirals out in a woozy pattern that throws everything off its axis. “Little Sister” draws the curtain across the stage and all you can do is throw a dozen dead roses and howl like a banshee for more. And just like that—voila–one of the best debuts of 2023 becomes one of the best albums of 2024. - Erick Bradshaw (Spin Age Blasters with Creamo Coyl on WFMU)