Grampfather | Gramppappies
(Independent)Kingston’s eclectic quartet Grampfather is a quintessential “slash” band. This describes the multiple genres their music encompasses. On the band’s fifth full-length album, the sounds include forays into psychedelia, garage rock, chill, and thrash. The one consistent throughline in Grampfather’s career has been James Kwapisz (songwriter, guitar, vocals). He’s ably joined on this release by Andrew Blot (lead guitar), Tony DiMauro (drums), and Jake Offerman (bass). The opening track, “Murder Hornets,” crystallizes the band’s dynamic approach, with a hazy, sing-song verse melody about how society is desensitized to violence through lies and manipulation, before erupting into a frantic psychedelic-punk chorus that concludes “So long to linear time / Fate’s not a straight line / It was all inside my mind.” The closing track, “The Grampening,” morphs from a pastoral mantra-like jam into a menacing thrash with plenty of wah-wah, crashing cymbals, and thudding riffs. Adventurous listeners should dig in!
