A Foul Form

Compared to the grander constructs of their latter-day Oh Sees albums, A Foul Form is a hit and run job where the music jumps in, leaves everyone stunned, and splits before the cops can show up. It's a manic blast of pure energy with lots of smarts if you're looking for them, and demonstrates Osees are never short on daring, ideas, and the skills to make them work.

Ultimately, any record which ends with a cover of cult anarcho-surrealists Rudimentary Peni can’t fail to convince in its sincere respect for its predecessors and inspirations.

A Foul Form does a great job of capturing that fiery intensity for a brief burst of chaos.

The result is a compact and highly combustible album that packs 10 songs into just 22 minutes. [Aug 2022, p.86]

Breathlessly brilliant stuff. [Sep 2022, p.93]

While A Foul Form honors the history of hardcore, it also occurs as smartly topical, the band’s turbid rage and anti-aesthetic stance conjuring a post-capitalistic malaise and the decay of global culture. And though this set marks a pivot from previous work, spotlighting the band as they navigate a fresh battery of sonics, it’s unmistakably them.

Sprawling spaciness is absent from A Foul Form which marks a return to the California shredders’ punk roots. The vibe is set by opener “Funeral Solution”: blistering guitar fuzz, punch drunk double drums, stumbling basslines and ragged vocals. [Sep 2022, p.48]

It’s all fittingly scathing, but there’s whimsy under the surface, especially in Dwyer’s berserk vocal performances. His taunting, sneering voice cycles through loose impressions of iconic punk singers—Henry Rollins, Iggy Pop, Ian MacKaye, Johnny Rotten—without ever assuming a final form.