The Party of Helicopters

Kent, Ohio's The Party of Helicopters brings art punk into the world of glam rock and heavy metal! If Ozzy had drunk thousands of pots of coffee all those years instead of thousands of handles of vodka, he might have created rock like this.

Songs like "Fire Eaters of Tomorrow" and "Reduced To Rubble" -- both from their Donut Friends Records release Abracadaver -- expound on the classic Gravity Records art-punk sound (see Heroin) by adding some good old rock and roll to the equation. "Mt. Forever," "Pounding for Vipers," and "Sack of Fear," all from 2000's Mt. Forever on Troubleman Unlimited, combine complex big rock guitar assaults with intensely intricate pounding rhythms. It's barely contained chaos, a sonic barrage just this side of a hurricane. But at the same time it's strangely...catchy.

The Party of Helicopters includes members of Harriet the Spy. These fellows have been known to tour constantly, so watch for them to come to your neighborhood. When they do, run, don't walk, to go see them.