Wood Chickens’ “Well Done!”, their follow-up to 2017’s “Countrycide”, is a continuation of the trademark rip-roarin’ cowpunk the band’s been known for, only this time it’s even cow-punchier and meat-greasier. No five minute tracks on this one, the longest song here squeaking past a blistering three. Yet even with the shorter runtime, the Chickens explore a greater variety of sounds and structures than ever before, from the instrumental surf rock opener “Theme from ‘Carlos’”, to borderline crossover thrash of “Mall Cop” characterized by wailing guitar leads, to (oddly) the closest to a 'pretty' song we have here, “I Live In Your Basement and Eat Mice”, which breaks up its sleazy, guttural, spastic verses with gorgeous, layered psychedelic passages that well up nostalgia for Meat Puppets’ “Aurora Borealis”. Much of the rest would suggest an ever so slight shift closer to hardcore/garage punk, but their country fried roots are still ever present, with “Emilio Estevez” and closer “Golden Goose” particularly sure to please fans of their debut. The music is occasionally interrupted by short clips of coughing and grilling meat, which adds a fitting ambiance to the whole thing.
A band that was once great has further tightened their songwriting, broadened and expanded upon their sonic palette, and beefed up their production. So yes:
Well done!
Favorite tracks: "Mall Cop", "I Live In Your Basement and Eat Mice"
You can purchase Wood Chickens’ “Well Done" here:
https://woodchickens.bandcamp.com/album/well-done
or here:
https://personalmilitiarecords.bandcamp.com/album/well-done
-- Travis Shosa
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