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.
In 2016, New York's The Fleshtones celebrated their 40th anniversary. They're the only band from the mid 70's downtown scene to remain active every year of their existence. Celebrating this milestone, the band released their twenty-first record, The Band Drinks For Free.
A groovy cover of Ten Years After's "Love Like A Man" (which features guest vocals from Lisa Kekaula of The Bellrays) starts things off confidently enough, and that confidence doesn't seem to let up. The album reveals a few modern-day Fleshtones classics in "Rick Wakeman's Cape", "Suburban Roulette", "Living Today" and "Stupid Ole Sun". The band also cover the forgotten surf-movie ditty "The Gasser" by The Hondells. The band rocks in it's usual way; classic garage rock with stomping beats, fuzztone bass, Farfisa-organ strains all laced with the right amount of harmonica wails.
Lead singer, keyboardist and harmonica man Peter Zaremba (aka the host of Count Zaremba's Crypt on SiriusXM) is in excellent form, as always. guitarist/vocalist Keith Streng, bassist/vocalist Ken Fox and drummer extraordinaire Bill Millhizer, are, as always, never less than excellent.
Yep Roc offers a Bundle which includes the vinyl LP, the CD, an MP3 download code of the album, a 7" single of the non album title track (which for my money is the best song by the band in years) and the album B-Side of "Love My Lover". And the real selling point, for fans of the stealth carrying of liquors is a Fleshtones flask!
Los Angeles, California's The Dream Syndicate were one of the leading lights from the early 1980's Paisley Underground scene. The poetic songs of guitarist/vocalist Steve Wynn seemed to successfully update the psychedelic garage rock of The Velvet Underground. The band existed from the early 80's till the late 80's and released five albums and one EP in that time. My personal favorites being their The Days Of Wine And Roses album and The Dream Syndicate EP.
The band had been together for less than one month when they recorded this. It was recorded in an afternoon, ostensibly as a four-song demo to get booked to play shows in the LA-area. "Sure Thing" has distinct Lou Reed feel to the vocals. While "That's What You Always Say" has a really nice late 60's fuzztone guitar part. "Some Kinda Itch" recalls Television. The recordings have a nice, homemade quality to them with controlled feedback and purposeful distortion outlining much of the proceedings.
The Dream Syndicate EP was first released in 1982 on Wynn's own Down There label and was reissued in a limited pressing of 1,000 copies for Record Store Day 2013 on the German label Blue Rose Records. It's a really nice pressing and the artwork is nicely restored and it features liner notes from Steve Wynn himself.
I love the record and would recommend it to anyone interested in the LA scene of the early 1980's.
Palo Alto, California's The Donnas started out as a fast pop punk outfit on Lookout! Records but transitioned into a Millennial female hard rock answer to Kiss, The Ramones and The Runaways. The bands' fifth album Spend The Night, was also their most successful charting at # 62 on Billboards Top 200 chart. The Donnas delight in deliciously trashy fun with kick-filled songs about hooking-up with randos, getting high on the pot marijuana, drinking beer - they actually reference Bud Dry on one song - (FYI Bud Dry was the beer equivalent of Mötley Crüe) - and general rock and roll partying.
Guitarist Allison Robertson channels Ace Frehley, Keith Richards and Angus Young with relative ease and singer Brett Anderson is always convincing in her convictions.
Highlight include "Take Me To The Backseat", "It's On The Rocks", "Pass It Around" and "You Wanna Get Me High". Spend The Night also contains the bands two biggest hits; "Take It Off" which charted at # 17 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks and #31 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. "Who Invited You" charted on Billboards Hot Singles Sales chart. Both songs have been featured in a bunch of movies and television shows. "Too Bad About Your Girl" while never a commercially released single, had a promo video that received a ton of airplay on MTV at the time. The track "Big Rig" is a vinyl-only exclusive track.
The cover art features the girls ready to Spend The Night in a wood-paneled bedroom filled with all manner of 80's artifacts; Atari 2600 cartridges, a Colecovision game system, 8-Tracks cartridges on a CRT old-school monitor and Freddy Kruger are also present for the slumber party.
The album is unpretentious, trashy rock n roll fun.
This Record Store Day birthed a single
from The Electric Prunes. The Electric Prunes are well-known for the
singles “I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night” and “Get Me To The
World On Time”. Both songs were recorded in 1966 and were outtakes
for the band's self-titled debut album. The Hollies cover “I've Got
A Way Of My Own” features Byrdsian backing harmony vocals and the
jaunty “World Of Darkness” sounds like an R&B garage rock
standard.
A nice and welcome release from a band
that doesn't have their back-catalog exploited as much as other
bands.
The Shadows Of Knight are one of the
definitive American garage rock bands from the mid 60's. Their most
successful chart entry was their top-ten cover of “Gloria” by
Them. It contained the then-risque lyric “She comes to my room”
which the Shadows Of Night replaced with “She Calls Out My Name”,
which ensured airplay in all markets. Although, in many major markets
the song reached #1. They also made the national top 40 charts with
their cover of Bo Didley's “Oh Yeah”.
The always reliable reissue label
Sundazed Music issued an alternate version of “I Got My Mojo
Working” which was recorded at a 1966 session at Chess Records.
It's a lively, raucous recording and a fine addition to their
released output. The more interesting side here however is the
B-Side. It's a promotional advertisement for Fairmount Potato Chips
that was released on a Flexi Disc on Auravision Records in 1967. It
is the band introducing themselves and then launching into bluesy
proto-punk song about a “Potato Chip”. It's worth the price of
record alone.
The Oysters are a band that came to my
attention via an entry in The Trouser Press Record Guide (1991
edition). It basically said that if Paul Westerberg had increased
his drinking and Bob Stinson remained in the band, this is what The
Replacements would sort of sound like. The Oysters were a band from
Boston, MA and were signed to the TAANG! label (who released record
by Gang Green, The Lemonheads and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones). In
fact, Dickey Barret from the Bosstones is responsible for the cover
art for Green Eggs And Ham. The
band only released this one album and a single (Mine
Caroline also on TAANG!) before
breaking up.
Lead singer and
guitarist Richard McKenzie sounds like a decidedly off-key Paul
Westerberg. “Make It All Up To To” sounds like a mash up of The
Replacements “Mr. Whirly” and “Never Been To College”. Other
highlights include “Ballantine Stomp”, “On Special”,
“Headhunter” and “Reeperbahn”. While the band does have their
own sound, they certainly channel The Replacements more than anyone
else. Highly recommended for fans of The Replacements and fans of
boozy garage rock.
Minneapolis' The Replacements are one
of few bands on a personal shortlist of a half-dozen or so bands that
changed me as a preteen. They informally introduced to American
post-punk rock, American alternative rock, and boozy proto-alt
country. They are what The Smiths from the United Kingdom, were to
American teens in the 1980's in that they were a beacon for
disaffected, alienated youth looking for a spokesman to speak for
them. And they found on in Paul Westerberg. Or so I've always
believed in any case.
Boink!! was an eight-song
compilation album released in 1986 for the UK market on Glass
Records.
In consists of three songs from
Hootenanny - “Color Me Impressed”, “Within Your Reach”
(which had it's widest exposure in the Cameron Crowe film Say
Anything... and “Take Me Down To The Hospital”. Three songs
from The Replacements Stink (the should've-been-a-single “Kids
Don't Follow”, the bluesy rave-up “White And Lazy” and the
mini-epic “Go”) albums. Plus the B-Side to their debut single “I'm
In Trouble” (the fantastic, would-be-Merle Haggard song “If Only
Your Were Lonely”) and the previously-unreleased Alex
Chilton - produced “Nowhere Is My Home”. Alex Chilton was almost
the producer for the band's Tim album,
however Sire Records wanted someone with more name-recognition so
they in-turn went with Tommy Ramone. Who did a fantastic job.
“Nowhere Is My Home” is a fantastic song and also appears on the
2008 reissue of Tim.
Boink!!
is a wonderful, if seemingly random selection of tracks and the album
is pretty rare. In fact I've only ever seen it in record stores maybe
five times tops.
New York Garage Rock legends The Fleshtones have been signed to Yep Roc Records since 2002. In that time they've released six great albums, six fantastic singles and one delightful EP. 2015 saw the release of the bands "I Surrender" single.
The A-Side is a faithful cover of the 1968 Bonny St. Claire mod
anthem. The production here closely mirrors that of the original
recording. The band sounds in fine form and it also marks the return of a
Fleshtones horn section. Both Steve Greenfield (on sax) and Joe Loposky
(on trumpet) have played on and off with the band since the late 80's.
In my opinion, the only thing that is missing from a modern day
Fleshtones show or recording is a horn section. And "I Surrender" is
proof of that. The song also seems to musically reference the classic
Fleshtones rave-up "Whatever Makes You Happy".
The B-side is a tribute to the late lead singer of the French band The Dogs, "Dominique Laboubee".
The
song has a nice, moody harmonica line that recalls The Beatles' "There
Is A Place". It's a nice tribute to Dominique Laboubee.
"I Surrender" was something of a Summer hit on Sirius Radio's Little Steven's Underground Garage. In fact it was even nominated for Little Steven's Coolest Songs In The World for 2015. The vinyl single comes with a digital download code. And all in all a fine slice of vinyl from The Fleshtones.
The Flamin' Groovies
started their career in the late 60's as a San Francisco-based bluesy
garage rock band. They released four albums in this guise with lead
singer Roy A. Loney fronting the band. After Loney left the band in
mid 70's, Chris Wilson joined the band as lead singer and rhythm guitarist and they moved
to England and teamed up with guitarist/producer Dave Edmunds and
released three albums of Rickenbacker-driven
jangley late 60's power pop.
The second of these Flamin'
Groovies Now is a very
satisfying listen. The guitars sound wonderful and the band sounds
great. Of the originals “All I Wanted”, “Don't Put Me On” - which has a simply amazing coda - and “Between The Lines” are the
greatest of the batch. The band tackles The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Cliff
Richard, The Byrds and Paul Revere And The Raiders with varying
degrees of success. Only the Stones covers seem a bit off. I personally love the
album and think it's well-worth hearing (as are the other two albums
that form a late 70's Power Pop trilogy – Shake Some
Action and Jumpin' In
The Night). As is their 1971 classic album Teenage Head.
Los Angeles, California's
The Seeds were a unique 60's band. They influenced bands in the
genres of acid rock, garage rock, psychedelia and protopunk. They had
a few hit singles in “Pushin' Too Hard”, “Can't Seem To Make
You Mine” and “Mr. Farmer”. They're only now finally getting
vinyl releases of the retro/revisionist variety. Sundazed Music has
released such an item on Record Store Day of 2013. It's a
double-seven-inch release of the bands two MGM singles. Recorded as a
short-lived quintet at the end of the bands in 1970, the sound is
similar to what the band had done on the GNP
Crescendo label from
1965-1969.
“Love In A Summer
Basket” and “Wish Me Up” are blissed-out would-be Summer Of
Love concoctions that employ flutes, lazy guitars and Daryl Hooper's
keyboards. “Bad Part Of Town” and “Did He Die” sound like
early tracks by The Stooges. The latter of which retains an intensity
not commonly associated with the late 60's/early 70's. I only wish
this line-up had recorded more as than what's been made available
(once again after having been out of print basically since their
release).
San Jose, California's The Chocolate
Watch Band were one of the few bands from the 1960's that punk
rockers held in high-esteem. They appeared in the 60's exploitation
films Riot On The Sunset Strip and The Love-Ins. The
band are comparable to the Syndicate Of Sound, The Electric Prunes
and The Standells, only the Chocolate Watch Band were simultaneously
more psychedelic and slightly harder-sounding than those bands. Their
unique blend of Garage Rock and Psychedelia is just one reason why
they still get tons of airplay on Little Steven's Underground
Garage.
Released on Record Store Day 2012 on
Sundazed Music, this single is a nice coup for fans of the band. Both “In The Midnight Hour” and
“Psychedelic Trip” were produced by Ed Cobb and Engineered by
Richard Polodor and are outtakes from the bands No Way Out album.
I personally highly recommend seeking out The Chocolate Watch Band.
This single is just a small taster that I'd suggest to anyone who
like 60's Garage Rock and or 60's Psychedelia.
New York City's The Fleshtones have been producing their unique brand of "Super Rock" since 1976. Originally from Queens - transplanting to Brooklyn in the early 90's - the band has been the preeminent nuevo garage rock band since the early 80's. Connoisseurs of 60's soul, pop, garage and surf. The band has released Wheel Of Talent, their twenty-second album in total and their seventh since being signed to the wonderful Yep Roc Records in 2002.
There is the very first use of a string section on a Fleshtones album - on the single "Available" (which addresses the gentrification of Brooklyn) and "How To Say Goodbye". Both tracks incorporate them nicely into the bands melodic area. The album's other single ("For A Smile") features girl-group lead vocals from Southern Culture On The Skid's Mary Huff. "The Right Girl" is a British Invasion-styled nugget and features faux-cockney ballad vocals from Peter Zaremba. "It Is As It Was" features guitarist Keith Streng on lead vocals and references the bands biography Sweat: The Story Of The Fleshtones, America's Garage Band (Continuum Press, written by Joe Bonomo). "Roofarama" features a liberal amount of wah-wah guitar and whooping-backing vocals.
"Remember The Ramones" is about that Other band from Queens that The Fleshtones were friends/peers with and the time. "The Clash and The Pistols didn't exist/CBGB's was very loud/Suicide attacked the crowd/I was drinking Remy (Martin) with Marty Thau". The band humorously sings the chorus as "Remem. Ber The Ramones". The band does a Spanish-language cover of The Music Explosion's "I See The Light" (a live version of which previously appeared on their Soul Madrid LP). "Hipster Heaven" bemoans Williamsburg hipsters. Not a new subject for the band (the band's "Take A Good Look" from 2008 and "Haunted Hipster" from 2013 do the same). "Tear For Tear" is my personal favorite track and it closes things out nicely in a soulful way. And it features very nice lead vocals from Peter Zaremba.
The band seems to have refined the sound they established on the trilogy
of excellent albums they released from in the mid 2000's (Do You Swing? from 2003, Beachhead from 2005 and Take A GoodLook
from 2008). The muscular rhythm section of Bill Milhizer and Ken Fox
are well-accounted for. The Farfisa organ of Peter Zaremba is present (albeit sparingly)
as are the garage band backing vocals of the group. The album features guest backing vocals from none other than original Fleshtones bassist Jan Marek Pakulski (who was also on the band's 2001 Solid Gold Sound album). As a longtime-fan, it's nice to see his name grace a new Fleshtones album.
You may have heard Steven Van Zandt sing the praises of The Fleshtones on his Little Steven's Underground Garage program or maybe you heard them on an I.R.S. Records compilation from the 1980's. Either way it's high-time to discover this durable band as this album (as is Beachhead or Take A Good Look) is a nice modern introduction.
Here's the video review:
Thanks to: Yep Roc Records, Cassandra Fowler and The Fleshtones.
