’30 Songs Around 30 Seconds Long’ by Raccoon Venom (Album)

Raccoon Venom: drinking, politics and some more drinking

Drunk punks with banjos and ukuleles! Portland’s Mason Klauss and Reid Newlin release their appropriately titled second offering of 2016

Portland folk-punk duo, Raccoon Venom have presented the world with an album title that gives the game away in the most literal way. The album does indeed consist of 30 songs. It also offers complete songwriting democracy, with the first half written and recorded by Mason Klauss and the second by by Reid Newlin – an effective anarcho-folk machine.

The lyrics of opening track (the ingeniously entitled Intro) tells us, or reinforces, the album’s message of wry intent – as if you couldn’t already guess? Of Course It Is Happening In Your Head, Harry, But Why On Earth Should That Mean It Is Not Real, is another fine example of the wit these guys can provide and it takes longer to read the song title than listen to the song itself. A lot of the duo’s songs follow time-honoured punk themes: drinking, politics and some more drinking, meaning that they would be perfectly at home on a compilation by Fat Wreck Chords.

30 Songs Around 30 Seconds Long is a fun record from a band that has seven previous releases under their belts (drearily, the songs on those albums are of a normal length). It is the perfect remedy for the commute home from another awful day at work. In fact, you could use the songs as a guide to your weekend – do what they tell you and a great time will be had.

Verdict: Light speed anarcho-folk

Dave Chrzanowski

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