News

Operating out of Portland, OR, Drunk Dial Records more than lives up to the city’s unofficial motto to keep things weird. The label has been releasing 7" in an ongoing series which challenges bands to write and record an original song and cover a classic tune. All in one day and all while completely drunk. For the series’ sixth installment, they invited Italian garage-punk savants Hakan to record.

On September 28th, drunk on premium Italian beer (Moretti and Menabrea) and their favorite liquor (Branca Menta), Hakan, whose fuzzed-out blasts recall Marked Men and their various Denton-based offshoots, brought their hyperactive pop perfection to Drunk Dial Records with “Tempuras Never Come,” a study in three-chord concision that doesn’t waste a single second. This is melodic punk rock boiled down to its essence--distortion, speed, joy--and it somehow gets better with every listen.

As is customary (read: mandatory) for Drunk Dial seven-inches, Hakan blesses the B-side with a cover tune of their choice. Seemingly allergic to fear, the band chose to tackle DEVO’s “Mr. DNA.” Bold? Yes. Awesome? Also yes. Hakan plays surgeon and trims everything extraneous from the original, leaving listeners with one-and-a-half minutes of buzzing DEVO-tion that proves reverence lives in the red.

Pre-order the seafoam green vinyl version here or click here for the digital version. And if you live in Italy and want to catch the band live, you can do so on April 4th at Lobotomy Fest.