The super-group GØGGS is Chris Shaw (vocals), Ty Segall (guitars), Michael Anderson (bass), and Charles Moothart (drums, guitar). The guys have worked together before -- Ty having teamed up with Moorhart on that Fuzz release a while back -- but perhaps never in the service of something so hard. Pre Strike Sweep, out as of yesterday on In The Red Records, reveals GØGGS to be the sort of band that may be up to something nefarious.
If the title cut here has a near-playful strut, the more in-your-face "Space Rinse" is an unholy racket, bits of hardcore blended with real noise-nik stuff. Elsewhere, GØGGS uses the longer "Vanity" to explore the sort of territory Black Sabbath once charted on numbers like "Electric Funeral" early in their reign. Lots of what's here on Pre Strike Sweep is furious proto-metal and a bit unhinged, things nearly going off the rails on "Disappear" and other neo-grunge-y selections here.
To their credit, Ty and his crew keep things moving and focused in order to deliver the maximum punch. And while lots of Pre Strike Sweep feels like a fun side-project for these guys, so much more has a genuine sense of purpose. GØGGS have put out a record here that feels like that of a real band, whatever the hell that means, and Ty Segall and his boys are to be commended for making this work so well, and feel so legitimately and wonderfully unsavory.
Pre Strike Sweep is out now via In The Red Records.
[Photo: Denee Segall]