Hobocop (Photo: Lisa Mancini)(Photo: Lisa Mancini)

In May, Slovenly Records released a 10-inch from the now bi-coastal Hobocop, the duo of Brooklyn’s Owen Cook and Oakland’s Cody Blanchard, who you should already know from his work with Shannon and the Clams and King Lollipop. Recorded about five years ago, the record, entitled Half Man Half Cop, had a song shared on SF Weekly, but was mostly forgotten about after Cook moved to Brooklyn in 2010.

Luckily for us, the right person heard the album a few years later. According to Slovenly’s Bazooka Joe, “Label owner Pete Menchetti was on tour in Europe with Shannon and the Clams in 2012, and the dude from Hobocop who is in Clams

[Blanchard], had a mix CD they’d play in the van with Devo and some of his projects on it. A year later, Pete was in the office listening to the disc, and asked himself, ‘what the fuck is this?'” As they say, the rest is history, and today the general public is blessed with a fantastic rock-and-roll album. With songs primarily written by Cook, the highlights of the Hobocop sound are wonderfully crispy drums, bass-heavy guitars, and perfectly placed keys everywhere you go. Quite simply, Half Man Half Cop is tight as fuck.

Unfortunately, a duo with members on opposite coasts will encounter difficulties performing live. Don’t look for a Bay Area show any time soon, but you may be able to catch Hobocop in Brooklyn this fall when The Clams roll into town. Listen to selections from Half Man Half Cop below, and purchase the vinyl from Slovenly.