When I review a band, for a live show or a recent release, I like to do my homework and read up on them on their Myspace page and elsewhere on the web. While I get some understanding of the band from this research I generally tend to then shut out what I've read while I write my own review. But for Sydney band The Vignettes this was practically impossible. First thing to hit you is their Myspace status update:
 
Huge, heavy, rough and raw.
 
Yep, that's The Vignettes in a nutshell. Normally I wouldn't try to use too much of the band's own album review either, but if this isn't the most apt description of an album I've ever heard in my life then I don't know what is:
 
The Vignettes album 'D.I.Y./F.U.' is not your usual fare, especially not by today's standards. Inspired directly by Raw Power era Stooges, this will sound a little harsh to your 2010 ears. Recorded in 6 hours in single live takes, released only on vinyl and mp3, no post production (except some light mastering), mistakes included, lyrics ad-libbed, and levels in the red most of the time, this is a D.I.Y. proto-punk, garage rock masterpiece. You wont find your usual 80's synths, stadium epics, or feelgood summer hits here. Belgian music blog Pascalito's Way described the album as "the f*king bastard child of The Datsuns, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and death from above 1979", and couldn't have been more right. So sit back, relax, and prepare to be quietly seduced by the subtle nuances of THE VIGNETTES - D.I.Y./F.U.
 
It’s spot on, but whether there is anything subtle about The Vignettes or this album is debatable. Launched on 25 June 2010, D.I.Y./F.U. is, for all it's dirty sounds and distortion, a pretty catchy record. I hear a lot Black Sabbath and The Dead Weather in their sound, with a bit of The White Stripes from the excessive use of a very loud crash cymbal. Singer Lance Uppercut has one of the least pretentious approaches to vocals in music today, as evidenced by the raw emotion and power in one of the standout tracks “Lose My Mind”. Another standout “Modern Wasteland” shows the way the band pulls off wicked guitar riffs that cut through all that distortion. ”Megalith, Or The Battle Of Yin Chuan” is a monster of a riff rock song, while “F.U.U.F.F.” is a more traditional punk/garage rock song, as it’s fast and furious and angry.
 
Some people of course won’t like The Vignettes sound - they'll find it too raw, too dirty. But the simple fact that The Vignettes don’t really give a fuck makes it hard to fault them at their approach. You could argue that they are trying too hard to be hard, to be so uncool they are cool, but I don’t buy it. They really have produced the goods they set out to produce: a lo-fi, unassuming, punk/garage rock record. Check this album out, if you can get your hands on it. Or just go see them live because I have little doubt their live show would rip your eardrums to shreds. And for a band that wrote a better review of their own album than I have, what better way to end it than with the text straight from the front page of their website:
 
This record is our response to the over-the-top, shallow pop of Ke$a and Lady GaGa.
This record is our response to twee indie folk becoming the mainsteam alternative.
This record is our response to overblown, self indulgent and pompous stadium albums.
This record is our response to every auto-tuned, super slick electro album.
This record is an artistic statement;
Rough, raw, heavy and unpolished.
Recorded in 6 hours, in single takes, no post production.
Mistakes included, lyrics ad-libbed.
Black Sabbath meets the Stooges.
Sex Pistols meets Led Zeppelin.
We are The Vignettes, and fuck you if you don't like it.

Yep, exactly. 7/10

Photo by Margaret Burns