Ears Wide Open: Goon

Kevin Bronson on August 5th, 2016

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L.A. alt-rockers Goon have been making fans happy they show up early for supporting acts for a while now, but no recordings made it out in the world save for a handful of very good demos from 2015. That changes Sept. 16, when Goon releases the “Dusk of Punk,” six songs of heavy-duty but melodic grunge — the kind of stuff that would have made them underground favorites in 1992 and isn’t doing a bad job of it in 2016. Goon’s mastermind is Kenny Becker, who suffers a medical condition that periodically deadens his sense of smell and hearing. His songwriting became a vehicle for enjoying life when those symptoms are absent. The EP’s opener is just 2 minutes long, but it’s dripping with gooey mopery. “I hate to be so dramatic,” Becker tells SPIN, where the song premiered, “but it’s very true that this song was born out of emotions of regret and the fear of unrequited love. Basically, I wish I had asked out this one girl while I was in college but never did because I was too scared.” The EP gets in your face later — wait till you hear “Gay Rage” and “Merchant Hall” — but “Dizzy” makes for a fine, if quick, introduction.

||| Stream: “Dizzy”