Push-Pull :: Between Noise And The Indians

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Push-Pull
Between Noise and The Indians

Catalog Number: jnr33
Release Date: 06/23/09

CD + MP3: $10

MP3: $7

Track List:

Wright, Right?
The Magic
If the L Were a G
Fire
Eye Cry
$
Hungry
The Geek
Power
Sara
Pockets
The Lake
Wrapped Her In Horsepower

When we consider Push-Pull's 3 EP next to their new Between Noise and the Indians our reaction is simply: "What the fuck happened?"

What's happened is not so much a transition as it is an expansion and refinement of the band's earlier sound. What's clear is that this band has come into their own. Push-Pull have arrived.

This Bloomington, Indiana band of Mikes (Mike Bridavsky, Mike Hoggatt, and Mike Notaro) have combined grandiose riffs and complex arrangements into an anthemic rock album. Their sound lies somewhere in between high-brow prog and low-brow, PBR-soaked basement punk. With Between Noise and the Indians, it seems the trio have sharpened their wit and crafted their musical skills into something unique and undeniably important - a sound which Skyscraper Magazine insists, "sounds nothing like Shellac, Big Black, or the Wipers" but which remains "bizarrely good". Their triumphant sound is challenging by nature, but never succumbs to prog's esoteric tendencies or masturbatory "time signature stuffing". Using their brains and their balls, Push-Pull manage to effortlessly shuffle time-signatures while displaying an endless supply of hooks behind the walls of aggressive noise and pummeling beats.

Push-Pull released their 3 EP in late 2007 on Joyful Noise. In November 2008 Sick Room Records released their never-properly-released first album Hello Soldier and in the same month the band split wax with Prizzy Prizzy Please on the PPPPPEP. The Between Noise... album title was taken from a roughly translated Italian review praising them as "noise-rock flavored with intuitions post-punk" with "united polish madness hooks". We can only imagine that the writer was trying to communicate the band's knack for composing 15 second catchy choruses within aggressive, noisy experimental rock bookends; or their knack for connecting threads from song to song in sculpting an album that is truly more than the sum of it's parts. Any way you cut it, Between Noise and the Indians is a cohesive rock-opera of an album. Without the opera.

"Snares and crashes straight to the central nervous – a jolly classic rockin’ racket recommended for those hairy wrinkling ears of yours. ‘Hungry’ has one proud lion of a riff, a four minute parade, well deserving a stadium. And you, he, she, one doesn’t often notice a good bassist, but a good old crunch on this chap’s strings is welcome, very welcome. There are bits of Tony Iommi and King Buzzo’s greying pubes spitting around this plentiful logfire of fun. It’s as humble as a domino, swaggering the natural swagger. I like it."
Diskant

"With the voracity of a helicopter's blades, Push-Pull brings on the energy with this delightful slab of chaos. By the non-sequitur track titles alone, you know there's going to be a considerable math-rock influence present, and Between Noise And The Indians does not disappoint. These folks certainly know their way around a time signature or eight, but vocals and catchy choruses are also significant contributors to the noise. It's kind of like Don Caballero, The Dismemberment Plan, and The Jesus Lizard all thrown into a wood chipper together."
Indieville

"Push-Pull is one of a rare breed of bands that embraces their roots while avoiding direct comparison. Attempts to pigeon-hole their style have resulted in a host of inadequate descriptions, ranging from “progressive pop” to “noise rock”... Traditional song components such as structure and meter are viewed as restrictive formalities; they are briefly considered, and then quickly discarded. What crops up in their stead is an oddity that beguiles simple description, as it continually treads on the outer limits of aesthetic tradition... Off-time rhythms occur on a regular basis (e.g. “Write, Right?”), but are used sparingly to preserve the element of surprise. Panicked choruses rise and fade at unusual intervals (“The Magic”), only to be superseded by progressive overtones that recall mid-era Genesis."
Stereo Subversion

"Push-Pull = Jackson 5 + Melvins. I gots mad respect for Push-Pull. Bands that try and bring it and make creative, challenging music are way too few and far between... If you listen to these tunes and don't like it, you are lame and need to pull your head out and get down to the gratuitous rhythms of the pulse-pounding funk/punk rock that is Push-Pull. "
Slug Magazine

"The band is tight, the music is catchy, the guitars buzz, and the whole thing is really good... If you like buzz-saw guitars, poppy, yet crunchy music, you will definitely like this. "
Jersey Beat

"hugely impressive"
Americana UK

"At first glance, Bloomington, Ind., trio Push-Pull are just another rush of punk silliness. To dismiss them as such ignores how solid their latest album, Between Noise and the Indians, really is."
LEO Weekly

"Between Noise and the Indians is kind of like Fugazi if they had more attitude and a sense of humor... It’s clear they have loads of fun writing and recording and making light of their lives and everything. It comes through in the tone of the album. But it’s not so jokey that they’re impossible to take seriously (like Ween or Bowling for Soup). So if you’re looking for a backing soundtrack to your sarcastic afternoon, this might be it."
Buzzgrinder

"Push-Pull isn't satisfied with good old fashioned rock 'n' roll. The Bloomington trio mixes up the traditional guitar/bass/drums lineup with noise, spastic rhythms, and quirky lyrics."
Metromix

"Songs from Between Noise and the Indians are all over the board as far as intensity, subject matter and time signatures. "
Nuvo

"Push-Pull... has taken the definition of “erratic” to heart and completely ran with it. Their music is a mixture of oddness that spans the depths of progressive rock, post-punk, and electronics to create a sound that is... well just plain weird at times but impressively tuneful and melodic in many ways too... the band seems to thrive on lulling the listener in with catchy yet powerful pop slowly wrapping them around their finger before flicking them right back off by busting out waves of sludgy bass and riffage that hits so quick that it seems nearly unfair. Good stuff all around."
Built On A Weak Spot

"Whilst having its roots in the punk bands of the late 70's they add in some modern experimentation with the end result being suitably offbeat and quirky. Musically they deliver some tight arrangements with throbbing bass work aided by some crisp production..."
Sea Of Tranquility

"It is very hard to define exactly what genre Push-Pull would fall into. They produce an unbelievably unique sound that edges towards progressive rock... you can’t dismiss the amazing talent of this band- their use of crazy electronics, shredding guitars and haunting vocals mean that Push-Pull should have the formula for a great band."
Tasty Fanzine

"Complex rock anthems played with the sound of 80s sludgecore. This is a most intriguing conceit, and it works most of the time. The more I hear this, the more I like it. and as you might guess, louder is most definitely better."
Aiding & Abetting

"Great, focused noise/post-punk. Even at their quirkiest, they’re still tight and tightly packed with catchy, rolling rhythms and bright, melodic guitar work. Noisy sections, which could be annoying by lesser bands, buzz cohesively with upbeat energy and melodic sensibility."
Read Junk

"...interesting and complex music with a beat combo setup."
Subba-Cultcha

"Coaxing prog rock's elaborate, spiny, and convulsive tendencies into submission with deep, chunky riffs is the motif behind Push-Pull's latest release. Teetering on the fulcrum of dexterity and pummeling force, the equation is balanced with some lofty, driving bass and quirky time changes. And while comparing Push-Pull to Shellac meets Devo isn't too far a stretch it might be more efficient to call them an Edgar Winters Band/Jesus Lizard ho-down."
Fracture Magazine / Prick Magazine

"Push-Pull sound alot like early Flipper, The Melvins or Big Black.. They are a trio of Mike's hailing from Indiana.. Their music is a tight primal sound and they are attacking you with this 13-song CD... Pure noise rock with elements of both punk and metal... Shredding guitars with screaming vocals ready to explode... They go for the jugular vein with only a few lyrics but plenty of hard hitting energy rev-ups..."
Punk Globe