feedtime (always with a lowercase f) was an Australian noise rock group formed way back in 1979. They got their self-titled debut out in 1985 on an indie label called Aberrant Records, but would soon be receiving acclaim on an international level once Rough Trade and some other distributors got a hold of their stuff. Their music was essentially punk rock with a strong blues/American hick feel (sounds a bit like they'd be a psychobilly group huh?) to it, and with a sub-end sound flowin' with distortion and backed up by grindin' bass. They had no pretensions, no eccentricities, and didn't rely on image or reputation. They just pounded yer ***in' skull. Really, they were all balls and no bull***. It's no wonder that over the course of five albums they gained some underground notoriety around the world, and it all started with their rough tumblin' debut.
First thing's first, play this real loud, and make sure you've *** n pissed recently, 'cause this stuff'll rumble excrement right outta ya. Now set back and pour a tall glass a whiskey. Mmm... Where was I? Oh right. These guys are tough as nails. The guitar is buzzin' on the low end, usually with a real constant movin' sound. These aussies really dig blues n American rock n roll, and also wearin' cowboy hats and ridin' motorcycles. My point bein' that they take an old timey rockin' sound and sink it down a well of low-end, sweet ass, mmm... And don't forget that bass, chuggin' and grindin' in behind the flowin' riffs. And the drummer's a real mighty fella as well, poundin' out simple catchy beats for these minimal, hard-ass, ballsy tunes. The singer (who plays guitar too, so he's a pretty decent fella) has some real nice vocals. Normally he uses a gruff, deep-toned grunt (most notably in the harsh, fast-movin' ode to driving "Fastbuck") but switches off to actual singin' from time to time (which is real good in the slow mellow tune "All Down"). Some other tunes of note include the hypnotically weird and dronin' "Searching the Desert", the head-smashin' slow n heavy jam "Gee", the pure hillbilly greatness of "I Wonder What's the Matter with Papa's Little Angel Child" and most of all the supremely catchy simple punk rock tune "Don't Like". The whole album's awful nice, with not one song fallin' bellow the level of friggen cool.
Anyhow, feedtime's the real deal. In all of punk rock, post-punk, etc there's really nothin' like em. They took a simple, minimal approach and managed to create somethin' highly original, and really flawless. No one can hold a candle to these guys, and for that they have a special place in this reviewer's hillbilly noise rock-lovin' heart. As for the rest of feedtime's output, it's all ***in' great. Their follow-up album "Shovel" is on par with their self-titled masterpiece, and they could do no wrong for their whole career. It should also be mentioned that they ended up releasin' an album on the flagship noise rock label Amphetamine Reptile (whose catalog includes such greats as Cows, Killdozer and King Snake Roost) in the mid 90s after havin' been broken up for a while (some fellas may know of this reviewer's obsession with underground labels). Check these fellas out if you're diggin' what you read, boys. If you're on board with bands like The Jesus Lizard or the unkempt sleazy rockin' of The Cramps, you best be listenin'...
