Retrospective genre creation by both grizzled music critics and TikTokers has had many victims, from the constituents of Twee to Yatch Rock; however, the rebranding of 2005 garage rock and punk to indie sleaze has to be one of the more egregious. Half aesthetic movement and half musical umbrella for any 2000s band with smudged eyeliner (that hadn’t already been tagged as emo). The term was coined in 2021 and is often thrown around in discussion with bands like The Strokes, Sky Ferreira, Peaches, The Kooks and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Personally, I find myself pretty neutral on the reclassification of bands and genres 20 years down the line. Until now. The grimy post-punk garage rock revival of the 2000s played as a soundtrack to my youth and I find myself possessive of its name. The rock of it all, the punk of it all. While it may be misguided nostalgic energy and the fear of getting older, I feel fiercely protective of these bands and what they stand for (or what I felt they stood for when I was 10 years old). One of the bands recently thrown into the indie sleaze mix is Be Your Own Pet.
Back after 15 years and angrier than ever. Former teen punks, Be Your Own Pet, released their first album in 15 years- Mommy. Brought back together by Jack White as support for his 2022 Supply Chain Issues tour, BYOP spent the reminder of the year working on Mommy.
Album opener ‘Worship the Whip’ is introduced with a moody guitar riff and double entendres stacked one on top of the other. Smartly written and cleanly executed, the track still boils with their signature vitriol. While ‘Worship the Whip’ makes you forget it’s been 15 years since their last release, ‘Goodtime!’ hits you in the face with it. With lyrics like “everyone’s gotta grow up/ can’t stay a young punk lowlife” and “I’ve got two kids and a mortgage, what the fuck” you’re reminded this isn’t a new up and coming band. They’re experienced and sound like it. ‘Erotomania’ catalogues a one night stand turned obsessive stalking- from the perspective of the stalker. Complete with a spacey guitar solo and sinister lyrics, the short song leaves a big impression. ‘Bad Mood Rising’ is drum heavy in a way that would feel unbalanced if the vocals weren’t being delivered like they were being fired out of a shotgun. ‘Rubberist’ takes its time to deliver a distorted, 60s inspired sound. ‘Big Trouble’ could easily fit on previous album, Get Awkward, with fuzzed out guitars and lyrics alluding to the pressures that caused the band’s breakup- not to mention an insanely catchy chorus. A tune that sounds like an Amyl and The Sniffers track, ‘Hand Grenade’, comes in with a bang. With trilling guitars and vengeful energy throughout, the track could start a pit at any venue. Album closer ‘Teenage Heaven’ plays as half lullaby, half horror story as off kilter lyrics spill over twinkling instrumentation before lapsing into silence.
Mommy is the refined, and absolutely seething, older sister of 2008’s Get Awkward. As we age we temper, or get a temper, and Mommy is a perfect example of the latter. Sharply produced and organic in its growth; it reminds you of the band’s past without feeling like a caricature of itself. The album speaks for itself loudly enough that any label slapped onto it frankly doesn’t matter. It’s angry, it’s nostalgic, it’s punk, it’s indie sleaze, it’s guitar heavy, it’s witty, it’s worth the 15 year wait.
