Blasting through the speaker and hitting me dead center in my millennial core, YOOKiE delivers a cover album like no other. Rocktronic is the perfect subgenre depiction for this bouldering chaos that is “Dark Side of the Trash.” Playing off the title of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, these two brothers from New York are rumbling into the spotlight with this banger of an EP.
Monstorius’ viral hits are packed into this six-track EP, including their White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army cover and their Sunshine of Your Wub, an Eric Clapton ‘Cream’-inspired song filled with heavy vibes and nostalgic undertones of love. I’m not sure how old these youngsters are, but they sure do know the way to my 90s kid-filled heart as well as my parents’ vinyl collection that filled the living room airwaves during my adolescence.
Run the tracks!
Opening with “Seven Nation Army,” this big, raspy, anomatronic bass line rumbles through the speakers, causing extreme nausea from the intensity of its awesomeness. The guitars slice through the background and build with a drum and bass-esque backbeat, before the thunderous, identifying thumpy beat punches through. Just before the words “Run the Track” can be finished, a bouncy dance march blasts through the speakers, making the whole dancefloor bounce uncontrollably!
Grab your flannels and pack of cigarettes because this next song will take you on a nostalgic journey under the bleachers of torn jeans and trashy ’90s band tees. It’s one of the shortest tracks on the EP, but it hits the hardest. The iconic ’90s guitar line opens YOOKiE’s remake of Nirvana’s classic “ Come as you Are,” before big reverberant bass lines transport you back to 93.
My MTV era
Just when things couldn’t get any more nostalgic, the opening chord to “Fight for Your Right” hits with pure distorted angst. With this perfect selection of ’90s angst tracks, I feel like the EP should be called “The Dark Side of MTV,” showcasing a list of MTV-style bangers. Fighting for their right to do things their own way, YOOKiE continues a sick as fuck EP with banger after banger.
Enlisting the help of Code Pandorum, they tear through another track with Rage Against The Machine’s “Bulls on Parade.” Tom Morello’s opening guitar riff rips through the speakers, infecting your eardrums and hyping you up for the chaos that’s about to happen! In a jarring rhythm reminiscent of Riddim, the bass lines toss you around as Zack de la Rocha’s lyrics pierce through the chaos. I hope you have your earplugs in for this track because it’s heavy AF!
Time to travel back to the 2000s and let your inner nu metal kid shine, because you know what time it is! “Ooh wa ah ah ah, Ooh wa ah ah ah”—disturbed’s famous growls scream through as big, raspy bass lines gurgle in this shimmering nu metal classic. Yeah, you guessed it—“Down with the sickness.” I know you can feel it, whether you’re ashamed to admit it or not; you loved this track back in the day, whether it was cool or not. And let me tell you, YOOKiE’s reworking is an updated version of this instant classic.
Sunshine of your Wub
Nearing the end, the Cream-inspired “Sunshine of Your Wub” is their take on Eric Clapton’s iconic track “Sunshine of Your Love.” You know that signature backbeat pulsating through the airwaves, whether it’s from this moderate take, your parents’ record collection, or even a movie soundtrack, everyone knows “Sunshine of Your Love.” YOOKiE’s viral hit surely delivers just as much impact as the original.
Lastly, but certainly not least, it’s Black Sabbath’s track “Iron Man,” with its iconic bending guitar riffs, where the original shines through in magnificent glory until YOOKiE’s big bass takes over. Switching gears from some of the other tracks on the EP, the last part of “Iron Man” is super punchy and a total dance track, making the dance floor shake, rattle, and roll. I absolutely love the switch-up on this one until it dissolves into the mist like a mirage on a hot summer day.
This EP is about to blow up festival lineups and sweaty basement shows. It’s definitely at the top of my Rocktronic list. The only thing more epic would be if YOOKiE and KnowGood did a B2B somewhere, then I could just die and go to 90’s heaven. So get your grunge on, presave, download, do whatever you gotta do to jam this banger of an EP this Friday!