The Service Industry – Limited Coverage – Review

theserviceindustry200The Service Industry

Limited Coverage (Sauspop/Saustex Media)
by Scott Hefflon

I like Saustex Media’s rock releases, but I gotta get harsh on this one which launches their Sauspop imprint. Second release from Austin-based powerpop band with ties to Kansas City indie pop guy Mike McCoy (formerly of Cher UK), bassist was in Dumptruck and Spoon, and Meat Puppet guitarist Curt Kirkwood appears on several tracks. Sounds a lot better than it is. Sounds like every “indie pop” band I got suckered into seeing in bars during the mid-’90s. “Indie pop” usually meaning “lo-fi” (aka shitty sounding, usually cuz they’re broke), and “indie” because no “real” label wanted them. Hence the flair up of indie labels, which then made indie not such a “you’re unsigned because you suck” slam. Suddenly, every shit band could get signed to labels no one ever heard of, and still sell no records because they still sucked. But indie became a point of pride, and fanzines exploded like a freakin’ rash to try to make sense of the good underground bands from the shitty underground bands, or at least get comped free CDs and show tickets until the trustfund was gone and the “Editors” had to get real jobs.
(www.sauspop.com)