Rejectionville

Perth’s 70s and 80s punk scenes have experienced a small resurgence recently, with the Scientists, Stems and Triffids all either reforming, re-releasing old material, or both. A band that rode the punk revivals that those band spearheaded, the lesser known Kryptonics, have waited until now for their own rise from the phoenix fire. Rejectionville is a two-disc, 38-track complete retrospective of their releases, mostly 7-inch singles, from 1985 to 1992, plus live recordings lifted from charmingly hiss-heavy tape.

Listening to this, it’s amazing how many Perth bands are still working in the Kryptonics? mould, either though their direct influence or by complete coincidence. Certain songs sound like they could be current Capital City or Volcanics tracks, except they sound fresher and more vicious. This is a fond and fitting tribute, showing the band in their best, hectic light, proving that their short life was a quick and heady ride of catchy garage post-punk, glam rock and gutter blues. However, the band’s one-note style makes this exhaustive collection a pretty exhausting listen. Unlike the Replacements, who also issued a greatest hits last year and come through in some of these songs as clear influences, the Kryptonics resisted musical change. It is perhaps this more than anything that charted the course of their troubled life and brought about their premature demise.