In Baptized in Rock & Roll (Class of 1999), Lewnatic anointed his outsider ethos in a lo-fi grunge-pop confession ripped from the amp-split seams of his EP, Overture. As an artist unafraid to put on his reverence for rock n roll on his sleeve, Lewnatic let his riffs do the speaking within the standout single. There’s a contact of Arctic Monkeys’ indie swagger within the strings, a scuzzy nod to Weezer within the garage-laced licks, and a proud refusal to sand down any of the uncooked edges.
It’s a string-written love letter to amplification and distortion, the dual altar candles for a religion that’s been flickering because the ‘50s. By means of tape-warped atmospherics, riff-loaded refrains, and a lo-fi crackle that feels extra lived-in than produced, the San Francisco-hailing artist cements his place within the new class of underground alt provocateurs.
Lewnatic is the solo undertaking of Patrick Lew Hayashi, whose cultural roots and lifelong punk-grunge obsession gas the transgressive experimentalism throughout his expansive catalogue. After years fronting the Patrick Lew Band and cultivating digital subcultures via YouTube livestreams, Discord beat swaps, and street-level QR code promo drops, he’s hardwired his personal genre-eroding universe. In Overture, the perspective comes pre-distorted. And in Baptized in Rock & Roll (Class of 1999), the riffs come sanctified.
Baptized in Rock & Roll (Class of 1999) is now out there on all main streaming platforms, together with Spotify.
Overview by Amelia Vandergast