Redd Kross: Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY 5/4/2017: Beneath The Valley Of The Teen Babes From Monsanto Tour

Hawthorne California's Redd Kross have been on tour this Spring, celebrating the reissue of their classic Teen Babes From Monsanto album. The band is one of the key figures from the late 70's LA punk scene (their first show was opening up for a Keith Morris-fronted Black Flag) who later morphed into a trashy, glammy, power pop, alt-rock outfit. After returning after a nearly ten-year hiatus with their Researching The Blues album in 2012, Kross have been going strong ever since.

The band graced Bowery Ballroom last week and put on an enthusiastic, ninety-minute, twenty-song set. The band had a new drummer (Roy McDonald was unavailable for the tour) in the form of Melvins drummer Dale Crover and touring lead guitarist Jason Shapiro (Robert Hecker, is a teacher and can't just up and tour anymore). The McDonald brothers, Jeff and Steve had a great on-stage rapport, with Steve providing a lot of funny anecdotes. The band were very well-rehearsed (except for one song, "It Won't Be Long", where there was a discrepancy over key and necessitated a few false starts).

The band played plenty of their loved singles; "Switchblade Sister", "Annie's Gone", "Jimmy's Fantasy" and "Lady In The Front Row". Plus a few deeper cuts; "Annette's Got The Hits", "Peach Kelli Pop" and "Neurotica". But the real treat was the band performing the entire Teen Babes all-covers album (ahem, "Rock And Roll Retrospective") in its' seven-song entirety (it's a short album). Hearing them perform "Ann" by The Stooges, "Saviour Machine" by David Bowie and "Citadel" by The Rolling Stones was a very nice treat for hardcore-fans, of which I am one.

They put on a great show with a very-well considered setlist. If you have to opportunity to see the band, by all means do.

Redd Kross: Hot Issue (Redd Kross Fashion Records/2016)

Hawthorne, California's Redd Kross were inactive for inactive for nearly ten years. After the band's tour for 1997's Show World, they quietly went on hiatus. Lead guitarist Eddie Kurdziel passed away of a heroin overdose in 1999. Jeff McDonald formed Ze Malibu Kids and Steve McDonald for the Steve McDonald Group. In 2006 the band formally reunited with classic Neurotica-era members Roy McDonald (no relation) and Robert Hecker. This band went on to record the critically acclaimed Researching The Blues album on Merge Records in 2012.

Throughout all of this activity/inactivity the band recorded a wealth of material. Some of which have included on Hot Issue, which is a self-released album in a limited edition of 500 copies. It comes in magazine-styled artwork and includes a download code.

Taking tracks that have been both previously released elsewhere and unreleased from various time periods and compiling them. The results could have been pretty scatter-shot, however the results make for a surprisingly cohesive listen.

“Switchblade Sister” was a single released in the UK, Spain and Canada in the Summer of 1993. By all rights, it probably should have been included on the band's Phaseshifter album, released that September. Roger Joseph Manning of Jellyfish co-produces and appears on “Born To Love You” (which was a free MP3 download in the early 2000's) and “It's A Scream” which appeared in the horror-spoof Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday The Thirteenth. “Starlust” appeared on the Jabberjaw compilation album. “Puss N Boots”, the New York Dolls cover, is from the 1981 Hell Comes To Your House comp, when the band was still known as Red Cross. “That Girl” originally appeared as the B-Side to the “Mess Around” single. “Motorboat” is a Kim Fowley cover that was on the SMG This Is Not A Revolution...This Is A Mass Awakening! EP. “Don't Take Your Baby Downtown” is the original version of “Stay Away From Downtown”.

If you're a fan of the Kross and can find it, by all means pick it up.  

Here's The Video Review:

Thanks to: Roger Joseph Manning Jr. Atomic Pop Monkey and Redd Kross,

Redd Kross: Three Ten-Inch EP's (1993, 1993, 1994).

2,500 Redd Kross Fans Can't Be Wrong (Sympathy For The Record Industry/1993)

Lady In The Front Row (This Way Up/1993)

Visionary (This Way Up/1994)

After the commercial failure of Third Eye to turn Redd Kross into a houshold name, the band left Atlantic Records and released a few UK-only indie singles. Super Sunny Christmas was released in late 1991 in Australia on Inspid Vinyl, Trance was released in the Spring of 1992 on Seminal Twang in the UK and Switchblade Sister was released in Summer of 1993 on This Way Up Records in the UK and in Canada. 

Sympathy For The Record Industry collected various tracks from those releases for the six-song ten-inch” vinyl release of 2,500 Redd Kross Fans Can’t Be Wrong (a spoof on Elvis Presley's 50 Million Elvis Fans Can't Be Wrong). Highlights include the early 70's glammy “Switchblade Sister” (which should have appeared on their then-new album Phaseshifter), the glam/grunge rave-up“Trance” and its' B-Side “Byrds & Fleas” co-written bv Jeff McDonald and future-wife and Go-Go Charlotte Caffey.

Next we have the Lady In The Front Row ten-inch single from 1993 on This Way Up Records. The title track appeared on their Phaseshifter album and is a slice power pop perfection. A re-recording of “Standing In Front Of Poseur” from their self-titled 1980 debut EP. Also are a cover of The Kinks' “Fancy” and PJ Harvey's “Oh My Lover”.

Lastly we have the Visionary single from 1994 (also on This Way Up). The title track, again from Phaseshifter has a metaly riff and has big harmony vocals from the McDonald brothers. The B-sides are cover of The Beatles “It Won't Be Long” as performed by Queen and a live acoustic version of “Visionary”.

These are nice little unique starting places for the uninitiated, granted there are better places to investigate as to who Redd Kross are. However for the vinyl fanatic these three ten-inches (the only three released by the band) are fine additions to any power-pop, proto-grunge, glam pop fans collection. Or just check out Neurotica, Researching The Blues or Third Eye.

Here's The Video Review: