There’s something rough-hewn, authentic and wonderfully immediate about Fucking in the Future +5, a collection of odds and sods from Pittsburgh’s The Gotobeds out Oct. 13 on Comedy Minus One records. Why? Well, some bands, minus all of the bells and whistles and studio sheen, sound half-hearted or, worse yet, like impersonators of themselves on these between-LP affairs. The Gotobeds benefit greatly, however, from the stripped-down presentation, blasting material that wouldn’t be out of place on Poor People Are Revolting or Blood Sugar Secs Traffic, the group’s Sub Pop debut.
Kicking off with its circa-2012, five-song demo, The Gotobeds quickly assert Future’s modus operandi: jagged, raw and often high-octane trash-rock delivered with a dash of levity.
The fun continues with offerings from The Gotobeds’ long-out-of-print Mind Cure 7-inch EP; a shot of pure joy to the heart is “Television Addict,” complete with its Big Boys guitar shrapnel and Devo-esque chorus. Also, for the completists out there, the band throws in a rough “New York’s Alright,” which, despite its fidelity or lack thereof, exhibits all of the warmth and vibrancy of the final version of the track on Poor People. A beautiful and engaging take on the late Pittsburgher Karl Hendricks’ “Flowers Avenue” rounds out the LP.
Future does more than enough to tide over fans until The Gotobeds come out with its next sliver of full-length vinyl on Sub Pop, but it also completes a task many between-LP outings don’t: It offers a set of really good songs that would be as worthy an introduction to the band. – Pittsburgh City Paper, Oct. 11, 2017
