The Vicious - Alienated

Simultaneous with his work in Regulations and the Lost Patrol, Robert Hurula Pettersson fronted a little four piece in Umeå called the Vicious. Remember that comment a few weeks back about Umeå being an incestuous scene? Well, maybe that's not the appropriate adjective, but the Vicious' lineup doesn't contradict that statement. Robert had been playing with drummer André Sandström in power poppers turned post-punkers the Lost Patrol/Invasionen/INVSN. Guitarist Sara Almgren had been a member of the (International) Noise Conspiracy since their inception, and in the legendary all-female vegan sXe group Doughnuts. And bassist Andreas Johansson had been playing with the Umeå post-metal band Cult Of Luna going back to their second LP. It was, to be fair, a murderer's row of players.

So it should prove no surprise that this, their only LP, is a full-blown ripper. Released in 2006 in Europe by Ny Våg Records and Cage Match Federation, and in North America by Yannick Lorrain's Feral Ward, this was the hot record all summer. They'd tour the US in 2007; of course I missed them, to my eternal regret. Andreas had left the band by that point, replaced by Erik Viklund on bass. Given the choice between vinyl and CD, I chose the compact disc, since it had the first two Vicious 7"s on it as a bonus. And that's how I'm able to share it with you.

After that tour, the four members of the Vicious would return home, drop their English-language songs for their native Swedish, and turn into the beloved Masshysteri. I did see them play in the back of a comic shop in Baltimore to a crowd of circle pitters and bummed-out gamers. It was fucking magic. They'd continue to build upon the Vicious's blend of Dangerhouse-style punk, New Bomb Turks riffs, and bubblegum pop.

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