Brooklyn's Wharf Cat Records doesn't keep to any one sound — from Gothic post-punk to country-rock and noisy electronics to hazy psych-rock — but hangs on dearly to a punk ethos. That's what ties together the ACLU Benefit Compilation, which brings together 20 artists from across the spectrum — not to mention vinyl manufacturers, printers, engineers and others who donated their services — to do exactly what the title says. For every $32 double LP, a minimum of $30 will go to the ACLU.
"Following 2016 political events, Trip [Warner] and I began talking about a way Wharf Cat Records could help," Michelle Nigro, who co-runs the label with brothers Doug and Trip Warner, told AdHoc . "As a record label, making a compilation record to benefit the ACLU was an obvious answer."
You get new tracks by The Men, Palberta, Pop. 1280, Profligate, Alice Cohen, Blanche Blanche Blanche, Merchandise and more for a pretty killer compilation overall.
It also functions as a new band announcement of sorts for Dollar Band, featuring Dylan Sharp (guitar, vocals) and Daniel Swire (drums) from Gun Outfit , plus Steve Urgo, who plays bass here, but has also drummed for Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band .
Dollar Band's "Too Sensitive" is an appropriate track to lead off the double-disc record with such a cause, as Sharp muses on avoiding hopeless in hard times. "I've always been too sensitive / The piercing human cry / War makes me uneasy / I like to keep my blood inside," he sings with a straight-shootin' sly over one of his most indelibly snaking guitar lines. It shares a lot in common with the "Western expanse music" of Gun Outfit, but Dollar Band's introspective choogle clips just a little harder around the edges.
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