Laundromat Chicks & Topsy Turvy

Cafe Hochberg Booking & My Little Underground present:

Laundromat Chicks ( Vienna): From adolescent power-pop anthems to crunchy jangle-pop, Laundromat Chicks are the kind of band that reminds you of all your favorite bands at once. On their latest album "Sometimes Possessed", released on Siluh Records, the band continues to expand their sonic palette and songwriting, alternating their usual hard-hitting guitar anthems with more abstract, mellower musical ideas. The trio Topsy Turvy is the latest discovery from the sheer inexhaustible pool of the new Viennese indie scene. On their debut album, they manage to combine the energy of British post-punk from the 80s with driving surf influences and wonderfully quirky indie pop melodies.

Topsy Turvy (Vienna): There are now more offshoots in the Viennese indie scene than on the balconies of Hetzendorf. Every great new band promptly spawns a new one. Lena Pöttinger (drums) and Theresa Strohmer (guitar), for example, have only just been seen shining in the Laundromat Chicks alongside singer-songwriter Tobias Hammermüller, when they and bassist Victoria Aron come up with their no less delightful surf beat/post-punk band Topsy Turvy.

Nothing here is as twisted as the band's name, let alone anything as painful as the title of their debut album ("Butt Sore") would suggest. Rare as hens' teeth is a band that manages to rock with humor. Topsy Turvy can, see the summery parasol song "Parasol Song" ("I'm earning lots of compliments for the parasol I got and it makes me smile a lot!") or "Marcelino", their praise of nail biting ("I'll start biting my nails again / Maybe because I'm hungry / Maybe because I'm bored / Maybe so I can finally play some funky chords"). Even a song called "Possession Depression" indulges in a "Lalala" chorus, and "Dressless", reportedly a tribute to Viv Albertine from the Slits, has such a cool Marquee Club 1965 at 1am groove that you could almost complain about how deceptively easy Topsy Turvy make it look. Here's hoping they play us their whole album. Preferably twice, it might turn out well.