Nothing Is Real

Crystal Antlers are difficult to pin down. To date, they've offered a couple of LPs and one EP of psych-meets-punk songs that feature Jonny Bell barking and wailing all the while.

Certain tags may suit one or two of their tracks—a byzantine auxiliary-percussion psych jam here, a weirdo post-punk freak-out there—but going into their third LP, the only two words that really do them justice are 'rock' and 'loud.' They've jammed econo, taking a vegetable-oil-powered bus on tour and selling copies of their first EP on CDRs packaged in recycled brown paper bags. They're a mix between a DIY band that might get a wink and a nod from Gregg Ginn and that guy who'll argue 'The Rat' is the best thing the Walkmen have ever done.