Hard, fast, loud

Derek Lyn Plastic is an underdog in the Atlanta punk scene. He exists in a world that’s entirely his own and catalogs his songs one self-released 7-inch at a time.

The lumbering character slurs his words and moves as if he’s suffering through a perpetual hangover. In person, his responses are slow and considered. And just when you think he’s going to say something funny or profound, he shrugs his shoulders and mutters “fuck it,” regardless of the topic in the conversation.

Plastic’s leisurely and unpretentious mannerisms are an endearing part of his personality. Onstage, he carries himself in the exact same manner, even at his most spastic moments. With Derek Lyn Plastic, what you see is what you get, which makes for a strange dichotomy in performance. While frantically strumming his guitar and belting out snotty and sneering verbal assaults, his nonchalant motions contrast strongly with the angular, ’80s neon tint of songs such as “Vampires in Heat,” “Murder New Wave Massacre” and “Suicide Get Down.”

Alongside drummer Dwayne Flowers and bass player Kliffee Byrd, the group plays sharp, fuzzed-out debacles of hard, fast, loud songs that lift as much from the American punk bands the Ramones and the Dickies as they do from British counterparts the Buzzcocks and the Vibrators.

The awkward tension he channels feels embryonic, like it’s on the verge of culminating into something more addictive and compelling once it evolves to the next level. But for Derek, both the ends and the means equate to having fun playing music. And if people in the audience feel uncomfortable with his odd balance of lethargy and chaos, then so be it.

“Sometimes I think people are uncomfortable at my shows, but whatever,” he says. “I would still spit beer on myself and on everybody else when I play no matter what. I’m just having a good time playing music. Fuck it.”

Derek Lyn Plastic plays the Star Bar with Mammals. Free. 9 p.m. Thurs., June 12. 404-681-9018. www.starbar.net.