I first caught wind of Cambridge heavy-hitters Reports back in 2005 through a 7” split with Carlisle Sound that marked their debut, and the first release on singer/guitarist Martin Pavlinic’s label Paper Cities. Seven years later, Reports’ history reads like a primer on what’s cool in our fair city. The band shares members with local favorites Cuffs and Major Stars, has recorded singles and full albums with the best DIY engineers Boston has to offer, has played with myriad fantastic and now-well-known touring acts months before anyone else caught on to them, and released their best LP to date, Dinamo Cambridge, just last year on the ever-excellent Ride the Snake. Dinamo Cambridge features Reports’ patented brand of catchy skronk-rock, complete with the double-vision vocals that first made an appearance on 2009’s Bill Wyman Metal Detector single, but expands Reports’ post-punk leanings to encompass further spastic guitar forays, and more thick, blown-out organ chords. The band sounds exceptionally full while avoiding extraneous layering or clutter, and breaks heavy without ever seeming sluggish. The highlight and centerpiece of the record is the titular track, a sprawling vamp that might be Reports’ “Sister Ray,” breaking 12 minutes with the confident, sinister drive of a Fall song or something off Can’s Lost Tapes Box Set. Keep an ear out for that undulating organ drone intro when they play HomeGrown 4 next month, and get ready to shake it.

HOMEGROWN 4: BOSTON HASSLE FEST is happening on November 2nd and 3rd @ the Cambridge Elks Lodge @ 55 Bishop Allen Drive, Central Sq., Cambridge, MA.
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