This year in music isn’t any easier to distill into a list than any other year—which is to say it’s hard to assign a number to Spiderbait, the album that local rock three-piece Vamos released this summer. The band have been kicking around for a few years, releasing a handful of cassettes, opening for the likes of the Meat Puppets, and playing last year’s Riot Fest. Spiderbait was Vamos’s first piece of vinyl, released through Logan Square label Maximum Pelt, which has been on a hot streak this year—its catalog is a veritable tutorial on the finer rock sounds bubbling in the underground.
A few songs on Spiderbait stand out for me, among them “Feelmonger,” whose wordless, grungy soul chorus has popped into my head at unexpected moments over the past few months. Vamos previously released it on a 2013 EP called Midwaste, though I prefer the new version. It’s more raw, the vocals are grimier, and the extra coating of fuzz gives the rocket-powered tune an extra boost. Vamos play second to last at tonight’s free Empty Bottle show, helping local power-pop outfit Mama celebrate their brand-new EP.