Cougars kill Cobras

Like most small Northern California mountain towns, Chico has a serious cougar problem. Maybe “problem” isn’t the right word, many of them kill it at places like Monks Wine Bar; hell a few Synthesis Inner Sanctum matrons are quickly approaching cougar status. Still, I’ve never seen one of them kill a snake (though I’ve heard tales), so I’ve decided to give the time-honored Band You’ve Never Heard of Band of the Day distinction to Portland, Maine punk rock trio, Cougars Kill Cobras.

From the look of ‘em you might expect some quirky indie rock, but from one second listening to their ear-piercing feedback and pummeling beats and you know you are about to get your dose of garage-style indie-punk. Drawing firmly from the DC hardcore scene, this trio kills it with smart lyrics, abrasive scream-singing, distorted-octave riffs and tones that make you want to tear out your hair….in the best way possible. Check out their web site for useful information, or just check the space. And if you find the guitars are too gnarly for you, just hang in there for a second: it’s worth it, trust me. - Synthesis Magazine

"The other was the debut full-length from Portland, Maine's Cougars Kill Cobras. Abrasive, loud, punky minute-and-a-half aural garage assaults. Great lyrics, great energy, crazy guitar tones. Amazing stuff." - Adam Boose

"you can tell that the band is having a great time...this band has promise - Soundraze eMagazine

SOUNDRAZE REVIEW:

When listening to COUGARS KILL COBRAS you can tell that the band is having a great time. In "Ashes to Ashes" there were more imaginative lyrics than one normally gets to hear in a punk song. To be able to write a more fair review of their music, we took a quick listen to one of their other songs, "Bet On Your Life", and that song had a good movement towards a more memorable catch. " The Killer" was a big favorite here, but were limited to how much we can write on how many songs. This band could really build a good punk fan base. As for the song "Ashes to Ashes": unlike the title suggests, we dont see this song dying. Final word: were willing to bet this band is great to watch live.

-Soundraze eMagazine - Soundraze eMagazine

Breakthrough EPs by two emergent Portland bands
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY | July 16, 2008

For two of Portland’s noisiest and most exciting bands of the moment, Cougars kill Cobras and the RattleSnakes, chaos is a virtue and tonality is a worthless pursuit. Both can be loosely labeled indie-punk bands, but they take those unifying traits to different extremes. Where the RattleSnakes’ Tidal Living EP (available only on vinyl, with a digital-download link) is marked by a raucous but fun, almost sunshiny temperament, Cougars kill Cobras’ self-titled debut EP (a simple old-fashioned CD) sounds cleaner but more foreboding, like dance-punk filtered through a buzz saw

Not unlike their live shows, where the band are straight-faced and relentless — only lit by 8-bit graphics projected onto the stage — Cougars kill Cobras’ debut EP is both polished and nihilistic. The band’s visceral aesthetic fully emerges on their debut. Each track features abrasive but taut guitar and grinding bass lines motoring through feedback. Derek Geirhan’s drums make sense of the assault, and give the songs a confident swagger.

Frontmen Gerald Von Stoddard and Noah Defilippis sing in snot-nosed snarls — sometimes it’s hard to tell if they’re having a laugh or trying to start a revolution — about secrets and lies, sex, drugs, and violence, often in tandem. Their most vivid imagery is fixated on gazes that incite passion and mayhem — “She gives me fever and it’s in my eyes” (“Bed on Fire”); “She can look in my eyes/And we’ll do it all over again” (“California”) — and they’re strewn through both the band’s blitzkrieg anthems and their simmering mood pieces.

Though Cougars kill Cobras traffic in slick, oppressive minimalism where the RattleSnakes rock in lo-fi, spastic glee, both young bands share something important and rare in common, locally: they’re both completely self-possessed. In our incestuous little scene, marked largely by steady evolutions and successful tweaks of successful formats, it’s no small feat that both of these trios have sprung from (seemingly) nowhere and forged sounds indebted to none of their local peers.

- The Portland Phoenix

Cougars Kill Cobras: "We Were Warriors"

Here's a breakup song worthy of the name: "Before you're gone, don't take so long / Because the end is drawing near." Cougars Kill Cobras puffs out its chest, hollers in righteous fury, throws a flurry of frightening punches (and tosses in a couple fresh chord changes), and then really slams the door on its way out. Gerald Von Stoddard plays buzz-chunk guitar that pushes and pulls against Noah Defilippis' bass and Derek Gierhan's drums, giving the verses a great, heavy swing. In the chorus, the band slams and thrusts relentlessly on a single chord as Von Stoddard's menacing falsetto cackles and shrieks the song's melodic hooks.
- The Bollard

The 2008 Best Music Poll is out, which is all well and good, but Im pretty excited about '09, because I think we've already got a Best New Act nominee. COUGARS KILL COBRAS are one of the more exciting punk bands to hit the scene in awhile. Like the Rattlesnakes, there aesthetic is fuzzy brash and unpredictable. They pull a lot of inspiration from 80's and 90's post punk and garage rock( occasional ambience of Joy Division, the intelligently pissed off attitude of Dismemberment Plan and other DC indie punks) a style filtered through the hazy guitar sound of currently favored by No Age and Times New Viking, its really solid stuff. Check out one of their first two shows and buy their album this week. - Portland Phoenix

COUGARS KILL COBRAS
Cougars Kill Cobra
8-song CD

This is full of sound and fury. This is very sharply and astutely produced—the drumming, in particular, is state of the art, it’s like observing a building that has been removed, brick by brick, until only the scaffolding remains. If nihilistic minimalism is your thing, you might really like this. There’s no doubt these guys are on to something—see, for instance, the uncharacteristically somber tour de force “The Killer.” (Francis DiMenno) - The Noise

By SONYA TOMLINSON | May 21, 2008

A name like Cougars kill Cobras drums up a certain amount of curiosity about a band (especially with the older-woman–prey connotation), so there was a lot of interest surrounding the band’s first set at SPACE Gallery.

It was quickly obvious that these cats are the real deal. Fans were greeted by repetitious guitar, slightly distorted vocals, and a solid punk-rock sound. With their skill and professionalism, they might have just come off a national tour. The trio have seamless showmanship, nostalgic band photos, and the best band T-shirt design we’ve seen around here — houndstooth, a boom box, a cougar, a roller skate, and stars all in a single design.

CkC were accompanied by an impressive array of Atari-like graphics, triggered by the bass and drums, that were projected onto the band as they played. “We Were Warriors” was a standout of the set, showcasing CkC’s sharp songwriting and harmonious falsettos. At about two and a half minutes, short, genuinely good and catchy appears to be their formula. And they appear to be Portland’s next bright hope. - Portland Phoenix