When the members of San Francisco band Toyota recently met with me for an interview, they stayed in character the entire time, presenting themselves as representatives of a nebulous corporation optimizing the production of punk. While the bandmates were clearly trolling me, their charade illuminated the prevalent motifs of outdated mass production and bootleg branding throughout their body of work. The members of Toyota are the founders of the record label Discontinuous Innovation Inc. and their mixtape, Concept Model(s) I-V, also plays on the theme. But gimmicks aside, Concept Model(s) I-V was one of 2015’s best punk releases, with short bursts of jittery instrumentation and hyperactive, jeering vocals destabilizing its melodies and lending it many unexpected twists. Toyota performs at Thee Parkside in San Francisco on January 28 alongside CCR Headcleaner, Violence Creeps, Casual Hex, and Never Young.
.Toyota
Pseudo-corporate punk.
