Review / 200 Words Or Less
TV Crimes
Demo

Independent (2009) Michael

TV Crimes – Demo cover artwork
TV Crimes – Demo — Independent, 2009

I take pride in my local hardcore scene. I try to make it out to as many shows as I can, support friends in bands in any way possible, and occasionally book a show or two. So I'm continuing to do my part by telling you about TV Crimes, my favorite local band right now.

TV Crimes fuse together early hardcore punk with alternative rock, similar to SST Records era The Meat Puppets and Sonic Youth. The pacing of the songs varies from fast segments - see the opening of "Freedom from Religion" and the end of "What We Need" - to mid-tempo pacing. The guitars dominate the songs, ranging from chugging hardcore slabs to rock infused rhythms and are complimented by Joel Lefkowitz's inspired vocal delivery. "Stone Statues" has a definite Suicide File feel and the final track, "Regrets," opens with a Fugazi-inspired guitar melody.

With their demo TV Crimes demonstrate you can be a hardcore band and not be limited by the usual stereotypes of the genre. The songwriting hints at a great future for this young group. You can download the demo for free from their Myspace.

8.0 / 10Michael • December 10, 2009

TV Crimes – Demo cover artwork
TV Crimes – Demo — Independent, 2009

Recently-posted album reviews

Carnivorous Flower

Carnivorous Flower
Dead Broke Rekerds (2025)

There's a time to be cerebral and there's a time to tell it like it is. Carnivorous Flower lives by the latter. Their debut has 10 songs: 18 minutes in total. Each of the songs is catchy as heck and you can pretty much singalong on your first listen. It's "simple" punk with peppy energy and a lot of heart. … Read more

SUB/SHOP

Democatessen
Independent (2025)

Richmond, VA has always had a way of bending punk into something sharper and stranger, and Sub/Shop feels like a direct product of that tradition. Their EP democatessen isn’t a debut in the wide-eyed sense but a statement from musicians who’ve already spent years inside heavy, confrontational music and are now choosing precision over spectacle. Across six tracks, Sub/Shop delivers … Read more

Guerilla Teens

I Cyclops / Pride of the Savanna-7"
Heavy Medication Records (2024)

One-eyed wind-up dancing eyeballs boppin' and weavin' with Scott "Deluxe" Drake and Jeff Fieldhouse from the one and only and never replicated the almighty "The Humpers". I was lucky to see them back in the 90's in Toronto at a hot, sweaty club in the dead of summer, back when there was a blue hue of cigarette smoke, a faint … Read more