They are probably the most untypical New York band ever and at the same time they embody the spirit of this city more than any of the westcoast cokeheads that moved there. They are furious libertines, who fight for freedom of speech and thought ... and they are the first band in years that coat the words "I disagree" in thick layers of heavy riffage, the biggest wall of sound since God helped out with the horns of Jericho.
Despite the fact that "Panthers" are the heaviest band on City Slang since "Unsane" this 12" features the most danceable track ever. Before everyone else was talking about "MSTRKRFT" as the Canadian answer to "Daft Punk", they did an amazing job on remixing the "Panthers" anthem "Thanks For The Simulacra" we couldn't believe it, and even when we stopped dancing to the tune in the club we looked at each other going "what the heck???"
Recorded over ten days with Theory of Ruin's Alex Newport (Melvins, At The Drive In, The Locust) in relative seclusion at the Clubhouse, a converted barn in Rhinebeck, NY, Things Are Strange's nine densely sprawling tracks stretch to just about 50 minutes: single notes turn into swarms; incidental moments unroll and burrow into newer, unexpected movements before dissolving into a disorienting pan.