They've Put a Hex on Me

(Hex Dispensers by www.jhfphoto.com) There’s been a serious lapse in great garage rock releases as of late. There was a time when the good shit was being poured out like so much cheap beer—now a bunch of shaggy haired dudes aping Mick Jagger think tight pants and cute groupies mean they’ve made the cut. Wrong. I’m still crazy for Jay Reatard (who is officially releasing a bunch of singles on Matador now), and the Black Lips are a no brainer, but where are the hungry up ‘n’ comers? Am I stuck listening to old Clone Defects and Cheater Slicks this winter? Nah. I stumbled into something juicy this month. The band lives in Austin, TX, and their name is the Hex Dispensers.

Chris Owen of Budget Rock pitched their name my way months ago, but it’s taken me a while to finally get my grimy little hands on their killer disc. Amoeba was always sold out. Aquarius didn’t have it. They’re too little for the big stores. Finally, finally, finally I ordered a copy the olde fashionede waye -- though Get Hip, and goddamn was it worth the wait. One of the best garage rock records of 2007 is now mine!

Hex Dispensers is equal parts Ramones and Wipers, with a dark streak blacker than a Northwest winter (their guitarist David Bessenhoffer was in a buncha Seattle punk bands: New Fangs, Tractor Sex Fatality, The Blow Up). Subject matter: early graves, assassin girlfriends, and other topics of an equally bad-ass nature. They’ve posted a couple great tracks on their MySpace page – where I think we all should go to pester them to come to San Francisco again (I guess they played Budget Rock last year). They’ve definitely put a spell on these ears. – Jennifer Maerz