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Caledonia PUNKS coLLfOE: 5uB pops MURDER cify DtvrLS & tHE yo-yo'5 mt HtHEnS T he smirking naysayers who dismiss the Seattle-based Sub Pop Records as a lost, washed-up, "grunge" label are totally mis taken. The indie-gone-major has suffered its share of financial and spiritual woes through the messy aftermath of the recent post-grunge years, but has consistently released an eclectic slew of some of the strongest, most interesting, underground music—especially in the last year or two. Consider the offbeat avant-punk sounds of such bands as Vue, Les Thugs and Love As Laughter or the quiet, charming pop of The Pernice Brothers, Saint Ltienne and Beechwood Sparks or the vital, melan cholic rock of Sebadoh or the kick-ass guitar rave of The Go and Zen Guerrilla or the reckless, 70s-style hard-rock of The Hellacopters and Gluecifer or the complex, quirky instrumental experi mentation of Five Style and Heroic Doses. Hip pundits can't argue that there's not a hell of lot coming out of this label office. Two of the more savage rock and roll bands on the current Sub Pop roster are blazing their way through the South this week during a national tour. Pompadour-styled, tattooed, British punk quartet The Yo-Yo's and sleazy Seattle favorites The Murder City Devils have both released raging slabs recently. straightforward tunes are in the vein of Social Distortion and X, while the more melodic, pop-like songs sound like KISS playing the theme to "Scooby Doo." Danny, Tom and Neil split lead vocal duties. All four are dutifully clad in black and covered in tat toos and pomade. THE MURDER cfty DEVILS The Seattle Weekly once described The Murder City Devils and Mudhoney as "the Olsen twins of tHE ya-yu'S This London quartet was formed in 1998 by singer-bassist Danny McCormack following his exit from the metal band The Wildhearts. He recruited ex-Sugarsnatch vocalist-guitarist Tom Spencer, drummer Bladz and ex-B Movie Heroes guitarist Neil Phillips. The band set about constructing a set of guitar-driven rock anthems filled with pol ished vocal harmonies, pounding drum beats and basslines and a "classic punk" romanticism drawn from The Clash, The Ramones, The Sex Pistols and other alumni from the Punk Class Of 77. The Yo-Yo's debut single, "(You Got Me) Out of My Mind," appeared on the Rebound label in late 1998, followed the next year by "Rumble(d)." The band then signed to Sub Pop and issued its first full-length effort, Uppers And Downers, this summer. The band tore up the stage in Austin this past spring during a SXSW Sub Pop showcase at Emo's. The Austin-American Statesman's Anna Giulliani reported the massive show was "full of sharp rhythms, thumping bass lines and Ramones- worthy melodies: they played a fast and furiojs set, and it was good to see a few Brits still inter ested in doing the punk rock thing." Much of Uppers And Downers resembles the same blues-tinged guitar riffs and solos that inspired the Pistols and company. The most Seattle rock." Certainly the similarities in aggres sive, guitar-rock songwriting style and obsessions with the rcugh'n'sick lifestyle are there, but the Devils wir the prize for nastiness. Mudhoney knew its garage-rock history and pounded away with beer-drunk smirks; The Murder City Devils—as the band moniker suggests—are obsessed with more grizzly affairs. The hard-working seven-piece band's recent album, In Name And dlood (Sub Pop) is a grim but rockin' follow-up to 1998's comparatively straigh tahead Empty Bottle Broken Hearts. The new col lection slides from one tale of inebriated debauchery to another, with a few odes to blood- drenched crime scenes tossed in for good mea sure. The songs are filled with heavy' handed guitar riffs, drum fills and creepily oscillating organ drones. Well-versed rock historians will easily trace elements of such bands as the New York Dolls, The Stooges, The Deviants, The Gun Club and Swell Maps. The band formed a few years back out of the remains of such hedonistic Seattle rock bands as Area 51, Death Wish Kids and The Hookers. Fronted by bespectacled vocalist Spencer Moody, the current lineup includes guitarists Dann Galluci and Nate Manny, organist Leslie Hardy, bassist Derek Pudesco, drummer Coady Willis and roadie/official seventh member "Gabe." Through the last two years, MCD has been on the road almost as much as it has been at home. While the non-stop touring has sharpened the band's technical chops, it has done nothing to weaker its stamina and tolerance for boozy mis chief. Moody's on-stage yowling and prowling pro vides a Lux Interior/Iggy Pop-esque spectacle in front of a dense caterwaul of powerhouse rock antics, thunderous riff-mongering and fiery special effects. Expect someone to set Hardy's old Farfisa organ ablaze by the conclusion of the week show, and beware. Ballard Lesemann WHO; Murder City Devils, The Yo- * Yo's, The Catheters WHERE: Ultramod Compound (cal[613-2331 for information) WHEN; Sunday, July 23, 9 p.m. HOW MUCH: $5- That's why the only thing normal about us is our name! 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