Single Review: The Blankz – (It’s A) Breakdown

It’s happening again. Two tracks, just over four minutes. And what a four minutes they are. The fourth in a series of nine singles from Phoenix, Arizona punks The Blankz, the (It’s A) Breakdown listening experience is bit like finding Narnia at the back of the wardrobe, except the wardrobe is Donald Trump‘s America and Narnia is a magical kingdom where The Ramones are playing B-52s songs. It’s wildly tongue in cheek but also a kind of serious reflection on what the band call ‘mainstream media-induced ennui’. A wake-up call – unashamedly fun, simultaneously modern and retro, The Blankz are bringing old school no-nonsense punk sensibilities to a new wave of the disaffected. They clearly do not give a fuck.

The B-side, You’re Not My Friend Anymore is a singalong playground taunt couched lyrically in modern day social media terms. Both songs are snotty and ridiculous, exhilarating and best of all, there’s a totally retrotastic Moog synth slicing through the classic punk guitar/bass/drums line-up. Suddenly I wanna go surfing. In a biker jacket. And why not? This will make you grin for a week. Or more. (It’s A) Breakdown is available now as CD, 7-inch vinyl, cassette and digital download. The artwork is in 3-D, so a set of glasses comes with each purchase of the physical formats. Totally recommended.

(It’s A) Breakdown can be purchased via Slope Records here

You can stream and purchase (It’s A) Breakdown via Bandcamp here