ANTiSEEN / Rancid Vat - Split [7-inch] (Cover Artwork)
Staff Pick

ANTiSEEN / Rancid Vat

Split [7-inch] (1996)

Ruff-Nite Records


"Just like the late great Bruiser Brody and living legend Terry Fun, Antiseen and Rancid Vat's personnel are bad hombres who specialize in breakin' rules, brutalizing baby faces and then crowing about it."

Folks, sometimes when I walk into a record store, I just start buying whatever tickles my little punk rock fancy. So, when I beheld a split tribute to the mighty Bruiser Brody–beardy as heck! Jobbed to no man!–and Terry Funk–the man who cannot die–I snatched it up and ran home. I mean, after I paid for it. I'm not a jerk.

Long ago, in the mythical year of 1996, ANTiSEEN and Rancid Vat saw fit to pay tribute to their heroes through the fine art of song. Now, these bands have done several splits together over the years. But they all might as well be thrown in the toilet compared to this two-song wrestling homage.

ANTiSEEN goes on first and kills it with "Funk U: A Tribute to Terry Funk." The band churns out sludgy hardcore riffs while insisting all babyfaces get funked. Lest we think of this song as some sort of kitsch, ANTiSEEN goes all in on honoring Funk. You know how Klingons are always talking about how songs will be sung of one's victories in battle on Star Trek? This is probably what they were talking about. Much like the man it honors, "Funk U" will not stay down. I love this song.

Rancid Vat has a compelling subject in Bruiser Brody, and they lace their song "Portrait of a Real American Hero (The Bruiser Brody Story)" with facts about Brody's exploits in Japan. Vocalist Cosmic Commander shouts the story like he's shooting a promo while the rest of the band tosses out a loose blues vibe. It's kind of psychedelic. The only problem is that, while it tells us quite a bit about this mighty man, it's not all that cohesive as a song. ANTiSEEN wrote a legitimate anthem with "Funk U," making that song stick in my damaged brain all these years later.