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Stöj Snak

Planned Obsolescene Redux

Written by: PP on 21/06/2012 18:15:40

Stöj Snak is a folk punk side project from the Aalborg based Mighty Midgets guitarist Niels Sørensen. It's folk punk from the Against Me! school of thought, featuring some anarcho-punk aspects although the primary element is folk punk that sounds almost exactly like "Reinventing Axl Rose"-era Against Me!. Niels himself has dubbed the approach as screamer-songwriter as a pun on the traditional singer-songwriter genre, mostly because all the vocals are screamed and yelled with a harsh voice, despite the melodies consisting mainly of raw acoustic guitar and little else. But it's a fairly accurate description of the state of affairs on "Planned Obsolescence Redux", his debut EP under the moniker of Stöj Snak.

Now, the record actually has 12 tracks, but I've decided to call it an EP because it only has 6 original tracks, followed by live renditions of the same tracks straight after. These are interesting, and a little different from the studio versions, but they are an inherently pointless inclusion on the EP, simply because the studio versions are so much better. "How Much Tear Gas Does It Take Before You Start Seeing Red" is a track Against Me! would be proud to call their own, and the dance-able "Something To Drink About" is another highlight on the record. The coarse singing style fits perfectly on top of the aggressive acoustic guitar playing, which recalls similar (though fundamentally different) 'heavy' acoustic releases by imadethismistake and Frank Turner (on his debut album). The strings are certainly getting a beating here compared to your usual singer-songwriter stuff, again another point why it's only appropriate to call it 'screamer-songwriter'.

But what's perhaps most surprising about Stöj Snak is how little it sounds like anything else I've heard Niels being involved in. There isn't an ounce of Mighty Midgets influence here, and while they are a great hardcore band in their own right, there are at least two instances on "Planned Obsolescence Redux" where I had to scratch my head and wonder whether these weren't actually the best songs he has written to date. This sounds extremely promising, now lets hear some more tracks.

Download: How Much Tear Gas Does It Take Before You Start Seeing Red, Something To Drink About
For the fans of: old Against Me!, imadethismistake, old Frank Turner
Listen: Bandcamp

Release date 06.04.2012
5FeetUnder Records