Apocalypse Dudes
Turbonegro
1998
Album Summary
Apocalypse Dudes is the fourth album by the Norwegian band Turbonegro. It is the first studio album with Euroboy as the lead guitarist and the last before the band disbanded in December 1998. Released in early 1998 in Norway and Germany, the album was a huge success for the then underground band. Adapting a more glam rock-oriented sound, Apocalypse Dudes set the standard for future Turbonegro records and became the first part of the Apocalypse trilogy, consisting of Apocalypse Dudes (1998), Scandinavian Leather (2003) and Party Animals (2005).
WikipediaThe riffs are an empty promise, the irony (as suggested by the band name) is notable only by its absense, and there's not even a whiff of groove. I'm guessing they really liked the Ramones. Me too. But (didn't I say this about Fun Lovin Criminals?) that doesn't mean if I make sandwich-board songs with provocative names they'll come out anything like Blitzkrieg Bop. Especially if, like these flat earthers, I totally eschew hooks.
It’s a shame that some of these cool rock tracks, guitar riffs, and solos were wasted with vocals and lyrics that a 13 year old would have written better after discovering their first swear words.
Turbonegro... Am I allowed to say that...? According to the band, it's not at all racially based and instead meant to be like their music; FAST and DARK. Still, with that interpretation, it is not the Norsk death-music that I was expecting, though still less Cardigan and more Hives. Some of it was good... err MOST of it was good... a bit poppy with some surface-deep grit and grime. However, there are some tracks that seem as if they were written for performances on Eurovision. The vocals and mixing was just overproduced enough to ponder the identity they were carrying at the time of recording (... Gothy NSYNC anyone?) Eurovision, may not've been much a stretch, perhaps "Eurovision After Dark" as Turbonegro had stage performances outshined their music and evidently include antics like shooting roman candles out of their asses and playing in blackface in the early 90's. "Get It On" was great as is "Age of Pamparius", but tracks like "Are You Ready" which I suppose is meant to be frightening just plays like the Halloween lawn section at Home Depot. Maybe a little too refined for repeated listening, but there's definitely some stuff here worth saving and even looking forward to in the future.
Some of it was definitely catchy and fun, but throughout the whole album the only vibe I could get through the whole thing was "This is what a group of writers for a Disney Channel sitcom would create as punk music" lol. Gets 3 stars, but only just barely.
Loud, splashy and directionless. Posers. An album which makes you reconsider whether there are as many as 1,001 albums you must listen to before you die.
Absolutely amazing. Didn't know about this band but I can see myself becoming a huge fan.
This was actually a great album. Goes hard AF and lots of the songs are catchy. Love that the first one, "The Age of Pamarius", is the opening theme for Wildboyz lol. 8/10.
Rock n Roll often comes off as pretentious and trying too hard, or going too hard into substance abuse, but I really felt like these dudes where just having a great time and being slightly goofy, fuck-off fun rock punkers. "Prince of the Rodeo", "Rock Against Ass"
Truthfully should read through the lyrics to really understand whats going on here but this album really rocks for me. It made me immediately miss being at a great rock show. These guys have to be great live. They have some fun pizzaz which seems to tip a hat to the headband rock (is that a real term or something only my friends use?) of yore on the opener and then go into a much more contemporary sound that isn't far off from a lot of the rock I like today. Would listen again, and in fact already started the album from the top.
Fun, kind of brainless (by design) rock 'n' roll. Kind of lost me near the end, but the energy carries it far. My first thought was, "they seem serious about not being serious." Favorite tracks: "Zillion Dollar Sadist", "Prince of the Rodeo", "Selfdestruco Bust"
I’m not sure I needed to hear this one before I die but now I have. Very silly. Very spoodly. I did enjoy the handclaps on Don’t Say Motherfucker, Motherfucker. I predict that I will use “I’ve got a headache in my pants” as an excuse to get out of something before the end of this week. I won’t listen to this again.
Good vibes right off the bat. I was expecting something Harder based on the name. oh shit I got chills.
4.5 | No sabía mucho de Turbonegro, hasta ayer los conocía como una banda de punk europeos con un nombre gracioso pero nunca los había escuchado realmente. Resulta que imaginémonos a los Ramones escribiendo canciones de Alice Cooper y producidos por Village People. Que refrescante disco y grupo. Tal cual, está quizá entre los mejores discos de punk que he escuchado. El sonido bien clásico que creería uno de repente que es de 1978, no 1998; sin embargo, luego entran los cambios y las invenciones, un poco de hard rock por acá, algo de glam, tantito metal, distorsión, unos ruidillos.... muy buena producción de verdad sin quitar el núcleo de la música se siente innovador y no cansa. Temáticamente me encantó el concepto del grupo. Representan muchas de las cosas que me agradan de la música, son irreverentes e intencionadamente chocantes sin llegar a sentirse trillados o cliché, en mucho de su humor me recuerdan a un Rammstein menos oscuro y más preocupados con el sexo (sí, al parecer eso es posible). No hay una canción en particular que me sobresalga, pero en verdad se me hizo un disco muy muy sólido, suena a punk clásico evolucionando de los tres acordes base, hay una buena cantidad de solos bastante virtuosos que se sienten intencionadamente colocados en lugares de la canción en que no van. Siento que es como lo que sería una versión de Spinal Tap pero con verdadero talento o un Moderatto que realmente entiende el humor de lo que hace y lo sabe usar de manera original con talento y música propia (o sea… nada como Moderatto). Tienen suficiente originalidad y entendimiento de otros géneros para hacer una entrada elaborada como en Age of Pamparius, con un nombre épico... esperando alguna poética apocalíptica y terminar hablando de una pizzería. Son de esas pocas bandas que tienen la virtud de ser realmente graciosos e inteligentes. Muy interesante hallazgo, en lo personal no llega a calificación perfecta porque, aunque me agradó tanto, necesito estar de humor particular para querer escuchar punk.
I think I had one turbonegro song on a Kerrang sampler one time - "No! I'm Alpha Male!" Thought it was weird, but cool! Honestly feel the same about this album. Feels like a cool Rocky-punk that clearly has some of than scandinavian metal influence in its darkness at times. Maybe a 4 or 4.5 in actuality, but I'm happy to have something new for my rotation - five stars! || Name felt weird coming from a Norwegian group, and I'm still not 100% sold on it, even with stated anti-racist beliefs and looking to call out racism in Nroway and Scandinavia. Maybe if they decide to change it they could go back to their other original name idea "Nazipenis"
First off, I love the album name. Second, this is right up my alley. Very punkish and fun. I liked this.
I absolutely love this album. It's this perfect mix of jackass style jokes (didn't hurt they were on the soundtrack to half of it), genuinely cool hard rock a la Motorhead, and peppered with guitar solos. It also makes me rub my fucking nipples with glee when I read reviews for metal/punk/whatever albums on here, and so many people have written that they didn't finish the album. "Ugh, too loud!" hahaha, fuck you. This is a legit 5/5 without even thinking.
I needed this today. Where has this been all my life? Norwegian Death Punk. I kind of guessed what I was getting into with song titles like "Rendezvous with Anus," "Good Head,", "Don't Say Motherfucker, Motherfucker," and "Rock Against Ass." But I had no idea of the quality and intensity. Definitely falls in the punk category but there are hard rock aspects and rarely do you hear a lead guitar in punk as good as this. You hear all sorts of influences: Stooges, Ramones, Black Flag, Butthole Surfers, Monster Magnet (contemporaries at the time) and even Van Halen. But, their sound is unique. No bad songs or fillers on this; some may disagree. A song highlight was "Prince of the Rodeo" which sounds like Van Halen on Crack. Well, OK, more Crack. Fantastic.
Mind Blown. L'un des albums les plus intéressants depuis longtemps. Le mélange de punk, hard rock, heavy metal est très bien fait, les compositions sont solides et les leads de guitare sont incroyable.
Whatever numbnut categorized this as "glam rock" needs to have their hearing checked or their critic card revoked. This is punk. It sits comfortably on the same part of the spectrum as The Clash and The Ramones even though it's decades younger. As such, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe that's because my expectations were so low given the glam label or maybe it's just because I'm a punk kid who just gets off on guitars distorted to sandpaper roughness. Either way, this was a total joy ride for me and I'm here for it all day.
My friend Huw recommended this to me at least 15 years ago. Great stuff, punk, but melodic.
didn't know what to expect from the first track, this album was an unexpectedly **fun** listen, bowie cover of suffragette city is great
I liked it more than I thought I would. A few songs I'd come back to, but I would definitely give the whole album another listen.
Good shit, truly. I didn't know what to expect but the first few songs really hit. They have a good punk vibe but really non-punk lyrics and melodies.
3.5| Punkcito acido e irreverente muy chingón, me gusta esa mezcla que hacen con diferentes géneros, no los había escuchado y ya hasta me voy a hacer mi playera del disco
Este disco tiene una vibra entre Sex Pistols y The Offspring. Muy agradable de escuchar. Me gustó la canción “Prince of the Rodeo”. Le daría 3.5 estrellas, pero subo a 4 porque sí lo volvería a escuchar para manejar en carretera.
Wild Boyz theme song is on here This album is super fun and high energy - need to come back to this for running/workout playlists.
Highlights: Age of Pamparius, SelfDestructo Bust, Probably, Zillion Dollar Sadist, Are You Ready, Prince of the Rodeo On the surface, you'd think TN is just vulgar, trashy, rude, offensive shock-rock or garage punk...If not for the well-crafted licks, aggressive progressions, and the exquisite execution of every track here. The lyrics are silly, and they don't even matter, they're just a distraction. It'd be a shame to miss out just because the track listing contains words. like "mfer" and "anus", because every track on Apocalypse Dudes is worthy of your attention.
Biggest disappointment was that this was the first time I’ve ever heard this album - I like it! Certainly hear the influences of Black Flag and the Ramones. Good hard rock with some interesting/ridiculous lyrics. I’ll listen again.
Enjoyable but not something I would likely seek out. Sounds like something Tom would put on and I would be pleasantly surprised by liking. Slightly disappointed when I learned it was "Selfdestructo Bust" not "Selfdestructo Bus" and a song about the movie Speed
A solid 3.5 but I'm marking it up to 4 on the basis of their live show ass fireworks.
Stevig album! Hier heb ik toch af en toe op zitten headbangen. Niet super, maar een verdiende 4/5
A really slammin' glam metal album! Turbonegro wears their influences on their sleeves in this one, which I appreciate.
Wall of sound punk rock with meedly meedly guitar solos! What's not to like? Good mosh pit music. I will say that I felt like I had enough by about 5 or 6 songs in and started skipping around looking for something more interesting.
Rating: 7/10 Best songs: The age of pamparius, Are you ready, Suffragette city
Super interesting album. This self-named genre Deathpunk is way more thought out that than the punk label would suggest. The arrangement is complex and is able to keep the listeners attention through over 40 minutes of music. The lyrics and the name of the band are transgressive, but again, very interesting.
A really good album with a terrific sound and a lot of metal feels to it. I’ll definitely listen to this again.
Now this is a fun album, I was pleasantly surprised! Offspring meets Bowie on the stage with the Ramones? Giving it a 4 after several listens, but given age I might consider a 5!
It’s very good. Like you took David Bowie, iggy pop, the ramones, black flag, and the whole glam/punk sound and put it in a Norwegian blender. Pretty sweet
Fun album. I discovered this band because of Wildboyz (Jackass spin-off) and never expected them to be on this list.
p823. 1998. 4 stars Came cold to this, knew nothing about the band or their music. Pleasantly surprised. Vaguely pretentious hybrid of punk and glam rock with ridiculous song titles, but doesn't take itself too seriously. All sorts of echoes in here - Ramones, The Who, Queen, Oasis. I liked this more than I was expecting to :)
This was incredible. Never heard of them before but they have everything - cool riffs, high energy, driving beats, catchy tunes, funny lyrics. I bet this would be a great live show. Really makes it worth it when I get a album like this from this list.
Okei, oli aikanaan kovaa menoa (kiitos Elias tutkimukseksesta), mutta nyt on vaan hauska hiphop-levy. Saundit toisinaan vähän dänkkejä, mut hyvällä tavalla. Kuuntelin eilen kävelyllä ja sai kyllä asennetta askeleeseen. Kaiken kaikkiaan 4/5
Noni vittu huh huh! Kaasu pohjaan ja täysillä seinään tai jotain. Aivan älytön skandinaavirokkipläjäys! Hank Von Helvetehän kuoli viimevuoden lopulla joten muisteleminen on syytä aloittaa viimeistään nyt. Onhan tää törkee levy! Ai että! Taitaa olla koko yhtyeen paras tuotos. Miten täältä generaattorista nyt koko ajan tulee omia suosikkilevyjä? 4/5
Haha, dit is voor mij wel een klassieker. Dit album is wel hun beste, live is het een groot spektakel maar voor mij toch echt iets teveel over de top. Niet zozeer muzikaal maar met de schmink en de spijkerjassen en de "Jugend".
High energy rock & roll with occasionally ridiculous lyrics. It was fun, I enjoyed listening to it, but I probably won't listen to it again. I'm rounding this up to 4 stars because Turbonegro is a surprisingly influential and popular band for some reason.
Never heard of this band, but it was fun! The lyrics are not the best, but the music is rocking and it sounds like they are having fun with it and not taking it too seriously. Production sounds great too.
D'abord absolument scandalisé par le racisme décomplexé des Turbo n-word, j'ai fini par me laisser convaincre et à me prendre au jeu. Les atrocités xénophobes déblatérées tout au long de l'album ne m'ont rapidement plus dérangées, et ont même réussi à alterer ma vision d'une société idéale, originalement basée sur la solidarité et l'acceptation de l'autre. Un grand bravo messieurs.
Avec Apocalypse Dude, le groupe Turbo-n-word franchit très largement les frontières du politiquement correct mais retombe sur ses pattes grâce à une magnifique débauche d'énergie. L'album est une réussite.
Turbonegro was a stand out album for me for me. I had never heard of them and don't listen to punk or metal much but their brand of deathpunk I found ridiculously engaging and made me want to jump around and drive fast. In fairness, i listened to most of it while on the highway. But then reading about them, socially, so peculiar. First the bad, definitely racist. I know they say they are anti racist but I've always found the "we're sarcastically racist" argument as convincing as punching someone in the face and saying you were just being sarcastic to point out how dumb violence is - it's just not helpful. But the super homoerotic faux gay thing was fascinating. On the one hand, faux gay by presumably heterosexual people is in itself homophobic and appropriating. On the other hand, bringing loud and proud gay themes, lyrics and behaviors, even in a caricature way, into a super homophobic music scene worked at getting men in that scene to explore the idea that maybe gayness is cool and fine and acceptable. So, unlike the racism thing, it does seem they managed to use homophobia to counter homophobia and make several arguments against homophobia . So, it seem the net effect might actually be less homophobia in a homophobic sphere? Who knows. Anyway, super catchy, energetic, and original music. Not sure I'll listen again, still not my style, and the second half of the album lost steam, but I'll still give a 4 for the boldness, technique, and execution. And one of them actually owns a pizza shop they sing about. That helps too.
Good, grungy fun. Production may be a bit anaemic - I bet these guys tear it up live!
Intro molto molto moooolto bella. Partito bene, ma si perde un po' Bella anche la chiusura, tra il 3 e il 4.
More fun than I expected - will listen again, good noisy guitar grooves
What happens when you knowingly throw every hard rock, glam metal and punk cliché into an an infectiously catchy cocktail of hooks and riffs, with absurd English as a second language lyrics, by Norway’s finest faux gay rockers. ‘Apocalypse Dudes’ is gloriously ridiculous, super enjoyable and a shit load of fun, but it’s also a clever record, and more than just mere homage. These guy really rock.
I do not know how to properly say this, but let's be frank: They are a punk act who knows what the fuck they are doing with this name. While I really enjoyed the album, the tone-deaf name (yes, I understand it was the past, but I know they haven't changed their name, so fuck off If you feel you need to defend it) and maybe a hair of bloat do bring it down to a 4.
As I said in chat... if I could make music it would sound like this. 4 stars for Norway's finest cultural export.
This was much better than I expected! I was expecting something darker and gothy, but it was hard hitting, punky and fun! Kind of a 70's hard rock Norwegian "Dictators" sound/vibe with a touch of glam. I quite enjoyed it!
Put this album on to ROCK. THE. FUCK. OUT!! It's high octane, head-banging, air guitar-ing goodness all around. Musically, it's powerful, pulse pumping stuff but lyrically there's this very self-deprecating and tongue in cheek underbelly to the seemingly raw and unapologetic cock rock veneer. I love that about it, these guys send up the egotistical self-absorbed rock star character so well. But most importantly of all, it's just so fucking FUN!
If you are looking for raw, dirty, sleazy, filthy, sticky, hard rock... you really can't get much better than this
This album was a lot more rocking than I thought it would be. I was pretty discouraged by it upon initially looking in to what it was when I saw it pop up, but I had a great time listening to it. It's out of my usual wheelhouse so there isn't a ton to say about it for me.