It’s only been in the last four or five years that I have really come to appreciate Spitboy. I’ve always admired them, they’re even on the other side of one of my favorite records of all time, but they still managed to fall through the cracks a bit for me. You know, one of those bands that you’ve always known about but never really listened to sort of scenarios. I first heard them in ’95 or so when their split with Los Crudos came out and was into what they were doing, but unfortunately, I never delved any deeper. I wish I had. I really feel like I missed out on something.
Jes and I found this seven inch at some record shop in Atlanta a few years back which prompted me to look up how much stuff they actually put out. From 1991 until 1995 they released 3 seven inches, an LP, and of course the split LP with Los Crudos. I don’t know why, but that’s more material than I thought they had, and it’s all really quite good.
The best word I can think of to describe Spitboy’s sound is angular. It juts out in unexpected places. It’s choppy and disjointed, but very rhythmic. I hate, hate, hate it when people refer to punk as a “tribe” but there is something very tribal about Spitboy’s music. This record sounds like what it looks like when a misogynist is getting his ass kicked by a bad-ass feminist.
I of course never got to see Spitboy live, but I did get to see Adrienne Droogas sing with Aus Rotten a handful of times over the years, and let me tell you, she really added some much-needed stage presence to that band. I was also a big fan of her writing when she was a columnist for Maximum Rock n Roll, etc. Dig some of that up if you can. I think MRR might have all those old issues available on their website as PDFs now. Check it out.
I’m sorry to admit that, even though I heard Spitboy over 20 years ago now, it took me about 15 of those years to really understand their sound, and appreciate it the way it deserves to be appreciated. If you’re new to the band, I urge you to go find everything that you can and love it. Don’t make the same mistake I did.
James is a writer, record collector, wrestling nerd, and tabletop gamer living with his family in Asheville, North Carolina. He is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the North Carolina Film Critics Association, and contributes to The Daily Orca, Razorcake Magazine, Mountain Xpress, and Asheville Movies.