Way out there. From up in the attic, in the village of Cincinnati - the third album from the Drin has arrived to commence 2023. Cold rhythms reverberate through the layers of tape spliced together by Dylan McCartney and his impressive cadre of musical companions. The Drin spawned from a debut cassette edition of 50 on the Future Shock label, since teaming up with both Drunken Sailor and Mangel to issue two LPs. Their loose, careening live unit features members of Corker, Crime of Passing, the Serfs and Fruit LoOops.

'Today My Friend You Drunk the Venom' is the Drin's finest hour as a creative entity. McCartney's incredible command of rhythm lies at the forefront of the mix, complimented by a group that is able to seamlessly transport between post-punk, acid guitar jangle, and krautish experimentalism. There's even a stellar dub track on here. As much as contemporary artists tend to flaunt their affinity for the past - it's entirely worthless to apply such trappings to the Drin. Their genre-expansive abilities and deep knack for rhythm and layering are something entirely new and futuristic. Ohio has never sounded so close to outer space.


Our take: We named the Drin’s first album, Engines Sing for the Pale Moon, Record of the Week in March 2022, and now, less than a year later, their follow-up gets the same honor. The Drin’s first album had such an original voice I was worried some of its charm might have come from an idiosyncratic recording or some other chance confluence of factors. Turns out that wasn’t the case, because Today My Friend You Drunk the Venom carries forward everything I liked about the debut. The Drin’s music still uniquely combines punk, dub reggae, and motorik rhythms filtered through the hazy, lo-fi aesthetics of early Guided by Voices. I’m tempted to draw comparisons to PiL’s first two albums or Joy Division’s more droned-out, Neu!-inspired moments like “No Love Lost” or “Incubation,” but the lo-fi quality and the American-ness of the Drin’s music means those comparisons only go so far. But like those aforementioned bands, as well as the avant-punk/pop music Rough Trade Records released in their early years, pop isn’t a huge part of the equation, yet the songs are catchy and hooky in their way… it’s just those hooks reside in the beefy bass lines and interesting drum rhythms. I also love how much stylistic ground the Drin covers on this record, from the straight up reggae of “Eyes Only for Space” to the motorik punk of “Stonewallin’” (which sounds a lot like Joy Division’s “Transmission”) to “That Day (Azoic),” the poppiest and most vocal-forward song on the album. Today My Friend You Drunk the Venom is a gripping record from start to finish, and an essential listen for anyone whose tastes veer into the experimental fringes of the punk diaspora.