The Good The Bad and The Zugly (GBZ) started as the bastard child of the 90s punk scene in Oslo – young souls who carried the torch onward after Turbonegro, Gluecifer, and Anal Babes. They reminded us of a time when punk rock was a promise of infantile nihilism and pure, malicious fun.
Now, after six studio albums and a decade of notorious live performances, those once virile Norwegians have crashed into the inevitable convoy that is middle age. For any productive punk band, one would think this spells certain death – drowning in self-pity, diaper changes, heteronormative male insecurity stemming from changing gender roles, mortgages, marriage, and physical decay.
Although much of this still holds true, it seems that the bleak, satirical humor that has always characterized GBZ only draws new nourishment from the bitterness growing in these five hemorrhoid-infested carcasses. The songs get faster, the riffs rougher, the vocals more desperate – and the song titles, for which GBZ has always been praised, are more spot-on and ridiculous than ever.
