This came out in 2001 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
People think being in a punk band is easy — get an aggressive haircut, cop an attitude, learn three chords (and forget two of ’em) and you’re all set. And maybe sometimes that’s true. But being in a good punk band is a lot harder than people think.
OK, it’s easy to play the songs. But it’s even easier to play them very badly. And way too few bands have the musical chops to match the chips on their shoulders. Winnipeg’s Insaniacs aren’t as crazy as they’d have you think. Sure, their urgently overdriven two-minute blasts of old-school slam ’n’ bam have the disgruntled fury and guttersnipe snarl of classic mosh-pit punk. But there’s plenty of brains to go with the brawn — the eight songs on this 17-minute debut disc are as solid and authentically crafted as an old Mosrite guitar, with as many singalong hooks (all together now — “She hates my guts”) as any pop-chart hit. Nice to see a band picking up Winnipeg’s proud punk torch. Here’s hoping they use it to set a few fires.
