North Carolina's Sneakers are known for containing Chris Stamey and Will Rigby of the dB's and Mitch Easter of Let's Active. Before those people formed their respective bands, they released some of the most challenging and well-recorded independent Power Pop records of the 1970's.
Released on RSD of 2014 in a limited pressing of 1,500 on clear vinyl by Omnivore Recordings, their self-titled debut 7" six-song EP is now a nine-song 10' EP. The songs have a very samey-quality to them; they're all very good but none are immediately memorable and none sticks with you for very long. In that regard, it begs you to return to it since it's obviousness is initially elusive. And the returns, are not diminishing.
So, for fans of The dB's, Let's Active and Power Pop in general.
Damon Albarn, he of Blur and Gorillaz fame, did what many touring musicians do. He recorded demos of songs in various hotel rooms across the United States. However, unlike the majority of them, he went ahead and released these sketch-like recordings, warts and all.
Recorded in 2003 on Blur's Think Tank tour, these fourteen songs on two ten-inch disks all contain a humble-sounding listenable quality. But this isn't the sort of thing you're going to return to very many times. Drum programs, acoustic guitar, organ and vocals are what you hear. And the songs were recorded simply as just a means of capturing an idea on tape to be worked on further.
Of these songs, "I Need A Gun" went on to become known as "Dirty Harry" by Gorillaz. The remainder apparently never went further than the demo stage.
The artwork on the vinyl itself is beautiful and the die-cut packaging is very nice. So it is collectible for this and this alone. Otherwise, for Damon Albarn/Blur/Gorillaz completeists only.
Manchester (Bolton), England's The Buzzcocks have been touring to celebrate the band's 40 anniversary. The band played Irving Plaza earlier this month, and by and large the show was a success. Given the longevity of the band (read: age) I wasn't expecting them to be so full of natural intensity. However the band gave credible, excellent readings of the majority of all the classics. The sound, as it generally always is at Irving Plaza was wonderful. It's still my favorite venue for rock shows in Manhattan.
Just a few songs in, it was crystal clear as to why they're the acknowledged pioneers of Pop Punk. The busy yet efficient drums parts, decidedly individual yet lovelorn lyrics, thoroughly melodic basslines, the crystalline crunch of the guitars and the harmony vocals of leaders Steve Diggle and Pete Shelley. Their brand of Ramones wall of guitars with their own romantic concerns spawned the likes of The Descendants, Hüsker Dü, Green Day and Blink 182.
The band performed a twenty-one song set in just over ninety-minutes. The classics "What Do I Get?", "I Don't Mind", "Ever Fallen In Love", "Promises", "Love You More", "Autonomy" and "Orgasm Addict" were all performed and sung-along-to-loudly by the crowd (whose ages seem to range from teenage to retiree). My favorite songs of the evening were "You Say You Don't Love Me", "Why She's A Girl From The Chainstore" and the sublime "Harmony In My Head". The best performance was the bands' trance-y "Moving Away From The Pulsebeat".
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.
Kings Of The Wild Frontier was
the album that started “Antmania” in the United Kingdom. It also
contained “Dog Eat Dog” (UK #4), “Kings Of The Wild Frontier”
(UK #2) and “”Antmusic”” (UK #2). The album itself reached #1
in the UK, #44 in the US and earned the band a BRIT award for Best
Album and a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist.
It featured the
Burundi dual drumming of Chris Hughes (aka Merrick) and Terry Lee
Mail. The glam meets art rock guitar of Marco Pirroni. There's shades
of Ennio Morricone all over the album and images of American Indian
meets American Cowboy of the old West. All delivered in a knowingly
cam, post-art school way. By all accounts it is a classic album.
Sony has just
reissued the album on vinyl. It's absolutely 100% faithful to the
original UK release. It even includes the Adam And The Ants
Catalogue, which is basically an awesomely cool magazine all about
the ants and features a ton of photos and paraphernalia of the time.
Highly recommended
for all New Wave lovers. And loves of post-punk and garage too.
In 1977, Alex Chilton was in a time of
transition. The band he'd fronted as a teen idol The Box Tops broken
up in 1970 and the Power Pop legends Big Star – the band that Chris
Bell had formed with Alex, Andy Hummell and Jody Stevens - had broken
up in early 1975. Chilton had just released the Singer Not The
Song EP and to properly promote it he moved in New York. There he
formed a band with Chris Stamey (later of the dB's) on bass and Lloyd
Fonroff on drums. Later that year the band was known as Alex Chilton
and the Cossacks and had Fran Kowolski on keyboards.
Ocean Club '77 is what might be
dubbed an official bootleg. It was approved by the Chilton estate. It
claims to be a soundboard show. Which it may well be, albeit a
poorly-mic'd one. The cover art font doesn't do it any favors either.
However, the packaging is nice enough, with nice liner notes as well.
The first thing you hear is Chilton
ordering a “Canadian Whiskey & Coca Cola on the rocks” from
the stage to the bar. So, immediately you know it's going to be a
fairly loose affair. Which it is. Although, it's not too loose as the
rhythm section of Stamey & Fonoroff are tight-enough.
The song selection is pretty wonderful.
“September Gurls”, “In The Street”, “O My Soul”, “Way
Out West” and “Back Of A Car” all get confident airings. The
Third nugget “Nightime” does as well – a good year before it's
release. “The Letter” gets a different, slower arrangement.
“Can't Seem To Make You Mine” (a cover of the Seeds' classic),
“Window's Hotel”, “All Of The Time”, “My Rival” and “She
Might Look My Way” all of which appeared on the rejected Elektra
Demos, are in fine form here. As well as covers of the rock classics
“Memphis”, “Wouldn't It Be Nice”, Walk Don't Run” and
Nelson Slater's Lou Reed-produced “Dominating Force”.
Definitely recommended for the
Chiltonphile of Big Star devotee.
Here's the very special video review version:
Special Thanks to: Ebet Roberts, Norton Records and Dave Rerecich for making me vanish at the end. Into thin air.
