World War IX - Brown Bagging It

Gearing up for the next issue of The Big Takeover, so I thought I'd get this up before I'm swamped in review hell.

I had heard about Justin Melkmann through "Crazy" Glenn Wernig of the New York Waste, who suggested we connect because of our mutual love of GG Allin. We exchanged a few emails, but they went nowhere. Finally, I met Justin and his girlfriend (now wife) Trish at "Crazy" Glenn's house-warming party. They were super-cool people and I discovered that Justin also shares my love of Black Flag and old hardcore/punk rock as well. He worships Lou Reed, too!

Naturally, I got into Justin's band, World War IX. Unfortunately, the original singer was kind of a douchbag - one of those "trying-too-hard" types. When he split and Mike joined, it was a godsend - just what the band needed. Here's the review I wrote for BT 64:

"This is a significant release in WWIX’s legacy in that it simultaneously announces the arrival of vocalist Mike and the departure of bassist Annick. If you ask me (and I’m assuming you are since you’re reading this), Mike is a far superior vocalist to Max. His gritty street punk voice works a lot better with the music than Max’s dopey monotone. It’s especially evident when comparing two old favorites of mine that appear here, “Treasure Hunt” and “Employee of the Month,” to their older versions. Really, there is no comparison; these are the definitive versions. WWIX include a CD of the songs with the 7”, which to me is a stroke of business genius and something more bands should do. The brown paper bag cover is a nice touch, too."

Hey, any band that combines Damaged-era Black Flag with GG Allin is A-OK in my book.

The images and music were uploaded with Justin Melkmann's consent. Thank you, Justin!

World War IX
Brown Bagging It 7"/CD
(Red Black & Blue)
2008

Download Brown Bagging It as a .zip file!

Sample Track:

Treasure Hunt