Blood Brothers

Love Rhymes with Hideous Car Wreck (V2)

By Anne C. Johnson
Published: July 20th, 2006 | 3:05pm

Just in case you forgot about them while they were holed up in the studio recording with Fugazi’s Guy Picciotto and John Goodmanson, Seattle’s the Blood Brothers were kind enough to offer up this EP to hold fans over until the new album drops. Love Rhymes with Hideous Car Wreck, the EP, features the title track, plus various remixes and alternate versions of songs from their previous effort, Crimes from 2004.

For the uninitiated, how Jordan Billie’s unusual voice resonates will make or break a disposition toward this band. His vocals can impressively turn on a dime from a screechy coy falsetto into a ferocious shriek. This versatility is useful as the Bros. music, which resembles Bad Brains and a less overwrought Fugazi, is full of twists and turns and tempo changes. Billie’s vocals contrast nicely with Johnny Whitney’s more load bearing vox, which recall the Clash’s Mick Jones, almost eerily so (see: the “Peacock Skeleton with Crooked Fingers” remix with Sean Reveron from A Gun Called Tension).

No, love doesn’t rhyme with hideous car wreck but the anti-climactic live version of the song cleverly teases and the UK B-sides included here, along with a cover of Gang of Four’s “Anthrax,” are always treats for any fan.