Paint Fumes have survived a decade of being in Paint Fumes. No small feat for a group that’s released 3 albums for 2 distinct luminary labels (Slovenly and Get Hip Records), and swayed their way between opposite ends of a sonic spectrum (garage and punk; old and new) on a no-fucks-given wrecking-ball pendulum. Evolution occurred steadily from their earliest primitivism to more tuneful rockers. Road dogs when allowed to be, they toured exhaustively (including stints with legends King Khan & BBQ Show and Shannon & the Clams). Throughout, they racked more hospital stays—not to mention near-death experiences— than advisable by even the most nihilistic breed of rock’n’roll life-or-deathers. And yet now, after all the years and rigmarole, they’ve never sounded this good!

Real Romancer, Paint Fumes’ 4th LP—and first for Dig! Records (US) and Bachelor Records (EU)—is a whole new world of glam stompin’, duel-guitar with added bass hammerin’ sounds taken to anthemic heights previously unexplored by this born too loose group. If leader of the pack Elijah Von Cramon’s description of the band as “panic attack punk and power pop nightmares” rings true, this is Paint Fumes’ KBD-benzo treat-all for a 12 song long wet dream.


Our take: Paint Fumes is from Charlotte, North Carolina, just a few hours away from Sorry State’s HQ in Raleigh, so I’ve been seeing Paint Fumes shows for over a decade. Live, Paint Fumes is chaotic and often inebriated, and their sets are always memorable, if not always for the music they play. On their previous records, Paint Fumes had a primitive, lo-fi sound halfway between early Gun Club and the Urinals, but on Real Romancer, they’ve shaken up the formula. Honestly, I shocked when I first listened to Real Romancer… not only has Paint Fumes transitioned from a chaotic garage-punk band to a polished power-pop group, but they’re fucking good at it. Real Romancer’s big hooks and beefy sound brings King Tuff’s early records to mind… like those, it’s long on massive, memorable melodies steeped in 70s power-pop (think the Flamin’ Groovies, the Nerves, etc.), but with a massive sound informed by 90s alt rock. While some folks might miss the old Paint Fumes, I think Real Romancer is a massive improvement in every respect. The performances are stronger, the sound is way better, and the songs are just great. They even have some unexpected depth… take “Holding My Heart,” which sounds at first like a straightforward love song, but once you hear the full lyric, “holding my heart for a ransom,” the song opens up as a more subtle comment on the power dynamics in a romantic relationship. Every song on Real Romancer is like that, immediately catchy, but rewarding additional attention with unexpected depth. If you dig the hooky power-pop of their label-mates in the Whiffs, I recommend checking this out.