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Jimmy B & The Death Rattles – Porno Taught Me How To Love (Self Released)

Jimmy B & The Death Rattles – Porno Taught Me How To Love (Self Released)

 

‘Monkey Head’ is certainly a curious title to kick off your debut album but once you get into it Jimmy B might just be onto something like the song whilst not having the best sounding song ever certainly has some appeal and a well-crafted song it is too.  Jimmy B comes out all blazing but I can’t quite put my finger on who or what they sound like, Whereas ‘Tallulah’ is up next as it slowly gathers pace towards the chorus its got a neat piano and has a touch of Nick Cave about it but there are also elements of 70’s glam rock going on too. It’s a brave arrangement especially coming so early on in the album.

the songs are fairly long in the main and ‘God Is Here’ is straight up pop song with a processed drum sound keeping the beat steady as a piano drives the song way before any guitars join in.  As they do along with a choir of backing vocals it’s certainly a brooding number and as we reach the chorus we keep waiting for it to break out but it doesn’t which I like as it falls back into the verse. ‘On My TV’ is an out and out Rocker whereas ‘Numbers’ sounds like Gary Numan grooving on a Bauhaus song with the lo-fi effect on the vocal works well as does the songs drive. As you know what’s coming its sub prime time Marilyn Manson with its tapes and sneered vocal style, best song so far.

‘Just Like You’ is an out and out ballad with some gentle piano chords its got a touch of Him or maybe 69 eyes when they do the lush big ballad numbers a decent arrangement and well delivered. ‘We Are Fire’ again has pop tones and a real commercial edge. To take this album home there is another commercial Song ‘soul Savers’ as it clocks in with a progtastic five minutes although I’m not sure about using synth handclaps when real ones work much better.

All in all its an attempted big production album that doesn’t always hit the spot but it does have its moments and I’m sure as the band finds its identity they’ll be better for it and as they settle into a more sympathetic production job the songs will sound a lot better.

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Author: Dom Daley

“Demons” Mathias Carlsson, Interview

“Demons” Mathias Carlsson, Interview
Another day another twist on a genre.  It seems like Scandinavian Rock or as it’s now known ‘Action Rock’ encompasses a much wider net than a few Northern European countries. Within that genre of Rock ‘N’ Fuckin’ Roll you can pretty much squeeze the likes of Gluecifer, Hellacopters, Turbonegro, Zeke, The Hives, Streetwalking Cheetahs, New Bomb Turks, The Dragons, Electric Frankenstein, The Hip Priests, Bitch Queens, Scumbag Millionaires and a host of other great bands, man its all just a name anyway even if we do all obsess a little on tags and narrowly defined tastes. Strap on a guitar adhere to the belt buckle rule and turn that amp up!
One band that doesn’t seem to get the respect in the wider community or is held in such high regards would be “Demons”.  Sure those that know; just know, with a little diggin’ around this here web you can pretty much get a handle on whos who and “Demons” will be a name that gets mentioned time after time after time. They were there at the birth of a scene and have ticked along throughout making some fantastic records along the way.  Sure they might have veered off the highways a little and even gone on hiatus but with a recent mini-album recorded with Jeff Dahl maybe the time has come to reclaim their crown and along with Hellacopters they should get the coverage they deserve. With a new album ready to drop  “Demons” are most definitely back on track so here at RPM we decided to throw some questions at Mathias Carlsson and get the lowdown on who the hell are “Demons” and what going on? Might I suggest you sit back and relax because this is a long one…
OK, Mathias, We might as well take it right back and for those who don’t know anything about the band when did “Demons” start? You recorded your first album back in ’95 right? 
The seeds were sown pretty early and the roots of the band, in fact, go back to the late ’80s when we were kids growing up in a northern suburb to Stockholm. I wore my first Pistols pin to school in the fifth grade, from then on I was determined to start playing. One way or another. I started the band Rabieshundarna with Stefan Jonsson and some friends from school and we helped build a rehearsal space at or nearest youth centre as a community project. We didn’t have a clue how to play but we got a lot of help from the staff at the centre, they being musicians themselves. My dad gave me my first guitar and from then on we were all set to go.
At that time all the rage was MTV, hip hop, AOR and hair metal but underground music was a real factor as well. To take part back then you had to go to shows in semi-illegal clubs, buy independently produced records and tapes and read fanzines to know what was going on. Nothing of it was exposed via media or other official channels. Apart from buying lots of punk rock records the bands that really gave us the inspiration to find our initial musical style was The Nomads (which I first saw in 1986) and actually a great band from Gävle called Los Bohemos who were amazing live. We were very impressed by them. Stefan and I tried to catch them every time they went to Stockholm. We also got exposed to what was left of the Swedish punk movement with hardcore, post-punk, käng (d-beat) and the burgeoning death metal movement.
After a few years, we had learned to play and Micke Jacobsson was sitting behind the drums. We took the name Jawbation and started playing gigs, mostly local but also in other cities. At that time we had discovered the 60’s for real and tried to combine Nuggets style psychedelia with hardcore punk, heavily inspired by Union Carbide Productions. We also caught the ear of the A & R guy who discovered Carbide. Unfortunately, nothing came out of it and no records were released (although we got asked to be on a few compilations).
The group as it was back then had been a very tight band of brothers growing up together quite rough and when the bass player decided to leave in 1994 we realized we wanted a fresh start and a fresh sound.
Muffins Brink came on to help us record bass on a couple of songs and with that “DEMONS” was born. We recorded another bunch of tracks in the summer of 1995 which were supposed to be released as a whole album. No one was willing to release it however but a couple of songs ended up on a few compilations. It might actually see a release in its entirety sometime this year.
What was the “Scene” like back then? Places to play like-minded bands playing clubs etc. 
In the early ’90s there was no scene at all and we felt pretty alone with our style and influences. We actually went out to try to find bands like us to start something but no one cared about The Stooges, MC5, New York Dolls and music like that in those days. The punk scene was very radical and rock’n’roll was not a part of that music anymore. I remember going to punk clubs with homemade Stooges buttons and no one knew who they were. That proto-punk, early punk thing was largely forgotten for some reason. At the time I found it tragic that the punks had forgotten or rejected their roots and I was determined to change that. Our mission became to put rock’n’roll back into punk rock.
The Stockholm scene that we became part of started to finalize around 1994, 95. It was very small and centered around a few friends, bands and venues. Those who were going in a similar musical direction was first us and The Robots then The Hellacopters, The Turpentines and a couple more. The guys from Nomads became like the big brothers to all of us and shared their experience and knowledge. We all played the small clubs, Hyndans Hörna, Kafe 44, Studion, Tuben, Blue Funky for each other and maybe opened up for slightly bigger bands who went through town. That’s how the Stockholm scene evolved. No one had an album out so the only way you can hear the new bands was live or on an occasional single. It was a small but lively scene.
Is it true that Lux and Poison Ivy came up with the name “Demons”
Well, I met Lux and Ivy on the Flame Job tour to interview them for a magazine I was working for in ´94. They were a bit weary from doing interviews all day. When I entered the room Lux commented on my New York Dolls shirt and everything lightened up. They gave me a great interview and at the end I told them I was starting a punky rock’n’roll band and needed advice on the name. They were very helpful and meticulously went through the list I had. Both of them had a short discussion and agreed that Demons was the best choice and that was that. Most of the interview time was spent discussing music and records. They really seemed to enjoy talking to a fellow rock’n’roll fan instead of clueless music journalists.
Is the fact you turned down major labels to retain control true? That’s a brave step for any band especially one trying to make a name for themselves.  
Yes, definitely. There were no major majors though. Maybe one. Mostly sub-labels and so on. People who had worked with majors and starting their own labels or something similar you know.
For us, in the beginning, the whole point of playing music was to serve as an alternative to everything we hated about big label rock, poseurs and people who desperately and willingly would do anything to be famous or what is conceived as cool by those who are not. While most bands steered towards that lifestyle and seemed to want to end up like rock stars and play stadiums we wanted to go our own way.
We almost religiously detested what the industry did to music and was quite radical in our beliefs that music belonged on the streets and to those who played it.  We viewed punk rock as our folk music, philosophical saviour and were no tourists of the genre. It might sound forced and naive to those who weren’t there. I assure you it was nothing naive about it if you were a teenage musician in Sweden in the early ’90s.
Right from the start, we wanted to be a vessel for the true spirit of rock’n’roll, an undiluted blast of punk rock with true do-it-right-or-die honesty and attitude. We had nothing to hide and were proud to stand up for it. We would rather had died than mess that up. Everything else was secondary to us. Some people might have misunderstood this for posing, but those who knew where we came from and understood what we wanted to do gave us their full respect. That was the only thing that mattered to us. We never really steered away from that philosophy even though we’ve seen all aspects of the music business by now. I think that was what really set us apart from other bands from the beginning.
In the US I was accused by some journalist of trying to sound like Eric Davidson (New Bomb Turks) on the Stockholm Slump album. That was purely unintentional. Sure, we were inspired by them but so was everybody around that time. They took inspiration from all of us as well and took time to record portions of their album ‘At Rope’s End’ in Sunlight Studio with Tomas Skogsberg. I was there in the studio with them.
I have all the respect in the world for Eric (I helped him out with some facts, flyers and stuff when he was doing the Scandinavian part of his book) but my vocal style around that time was a product of what I was listening to. What I was trying to combine was rockabilly techniques and with heavy inspiration from rhythm and blues singers like Frankie Ford and Carl Gardner of The Coasters delivered with hardcore intensity. Then, of course, ‘Raw Power’ era Iggy was a big inspiration. In hindsight, some 17 years later, I do sound a bit like Eric and I guess that can only be explained by the fact that we had the same influences.
To those who still think I copy Eric on that record I say, sure, it’s a tribute to one of the best punk rock singers and frontmen ever.
what type of worries did you have at the time were there any pressures put on you from big labels? 
If someone wants to work with you it’s a big compliment. Nothing to debate there. We have quite regularly through the years been approached by labels of varying size, producers and other people of the business. Naturally, you are extremely thankful for that. We never tried to act like rock stars and treated everyone with decency and respect. There was never an offer we didn’t consider and spent lots of time discussing. Most every one boiled down to the same thing though: they wanted the material for a minimal cost and all the rights for basically nothing without any promises or, for us, valuable commitments on their end.
Last time we went through this they also wanted a percentage on merch, shows and graphics. I just got up and left that meeting. It was an insult.
But there is a price to pay as well. Especially if you don’t play by the rules in the music business. That business will lash back at you. As a band, we weren’t really prepared for that but it has become apparent over the years. We’re still a pretty obscure band, especially in Sweden ironically. Turning down people from the business definitely had a lot to do with this. We have this huge body of work and no mainstream publication in Sweden will acknowledge that. It’s weird when you think about it.
“DEMONS” rarely gets mentioned or respected even though we’ve done a whole lot for Swedish music abroad, been around for twenty some years, toured the world and made a whole lot of records. It seems we are truly the underdogs and black sheep of Scandinavian rock. We never wanted that label, we just wanted to do our thing you know. Now we have become some sort of obscure legends with a pretty big legacy.
I think we have claimed our own corner in rock’n’roll though. And we’re pretty much Sweden’s dirty little secret.
were there things you didn’t like about the band’s existence when on Gearhead? It must have been a tough decision for the band to take at the time were you all united on how you wanted to proceed? Was it difficult being signed to a label so far away? Looking back are there any regrets?  Do you think you would / could have done things differently? 
At the end of the 90’s Mike LaVella and Gearhead were searching high and low for a band who understood and combined the radical attitude of punk with modern high energy rock’n’roll. Mike was all ready a veteran of the California hardcore scene and if it wasn’t with a 100 percent punk attitude he wouldn’t have touched it. When he found us he realized we were not only what he was looking for, we fit perfectly into the modern (and classic) California hot rod movement with our greasy hair and street gang qualities. After all, the whole point of his magazine (which the record label was an extension of) was to combine all that. Therefore we became the perfect band for them and the scene that was growing on the east coast. It was a perfect match and we could do nothing wrong in Mike’s eyes. During our first tours and albums, it was a great situation for us.
At the time we had almost signed with People Like You Records out of Germany. Even though Gearhead was just starting up Mike convinced us to go with them. The notion of touring in the states was an attributing factor to our choice and for a few years, we went coast to coast playing many shows. Who wouldn’t want to do that? We had a great time in the beginning and Gearhead and “Demons” were the greatest match. Everything worked almost like a clock. Mike was very idealistic and told us we would be booted off the label if we ever were caught doing drugs, haha.
During those years we had a blast and experienced a lifetime of stuff. It was like being in the middle of a road movie. Hell, I’m still digesting half of it. I regret nothing about it. Definitely not.
The whole Gearhead era ended on a bad note however. But these things always do. The best thing is just to move on with what you want to do. We had recorded basics for a third full lenght studio album for them but when we parted ways it was never finished and stayed unreleased.
Do you think as time went on and the internet became more widely used it was empowering for the band and the world became a smaller place?
For music and bands, it has been great. These days you hardly remember how it felt, dying to get a hold of a song or wanting desperately to hear a record. It’s all there. What is weird though is that it has become some kind of a “like” competition. It’s like a new digital currency. Bands compare and chase likes all the time and can be elitist with these things. Unfortunately, the business picks up on that as well. When we took our break, in 2011, streaming was picking up as well as the like phenomenon. We were out of that circuit for about four years and kind of missed out on the promotion possibilities.
Personally, I think that it’s pretty pathetic that some labels, bookers and venues judge bands for how many likes they have. They should get in there for real and get dirty, not sit at home by their computers and see who won the days Facebook like competition. A band should be judged for what they can achieve in the studio and on stage, not how many likes they have on their recent post on FB or whatever. I understand that it is a question of visibility as with any advertisement or promotion. But as with all social media it gets obsessive and unhealthy very fast.
Then it seems like the availability of everything has had the opposite effect on certain, dare I say younger people. We have had problems with two other Demons who never bothered to check if the name was taken. Either they didn’t know how to navigate the internet or either they didn’t care. That’s some serious disrespect right there. It’s a mystery to me why you would do that. Music is about all about creativity and taking someone else’s name doesn’t make you look very creative does it?
Do you think being DIY has been good for your music have you learned things that have benefitted the band as a result that you otherwise wouldn’t have picked up? 
All I can say is that if you have some kind of talent, good idea or something similar, don’t be tempted to sell yourself short. Your music or art should be a product of you, not a label, producer, reality TV show or advertising company. Most business people just want to make some quick bucks off of you while you’re on your way through life. They don’t give a rat’s ass if they destroy everything you have worked for up to that point.
If you’re lucky you might meet someone within the industry who shares your passion, wants to be in on the ride, understands what you’re doing and wants to be a part of whatever future lies ahead. But that’s a rare thing.
With that said there are of course other aspects to this: survival, funding, change, knowledge, progress et cetera. What I mean is that the reason you do what you do has to be number one. Keeping your back straight, not taking it up the ass and being honest to yourself is what D.I.Y. is to me. It’s hard and maybe the real devil-at-the-crossroads situation. Especially when you are poor and someone shows up with a bag of change and whatnot trying to buy the shirt off your back.
Did being a DIY band galvanise you do you think? Make you more determined?
When we started out music saved us from a lot of grief and trouble. Punk rock was our Jesus in that respect, haha. If I wouldn’t have started playing at an early age I might have ended up a lesser person or even dead or in prison. Lots of kids my age and from the same place did. “DEMONS” sure have experienced the coldness of the industry, no understatement there, but we will try to find ways to play and release records regardless of how the business regards us. Being outsiders hasn’t deterred us from doing our thing.
Being D.I.Y. doesn’t mean that we are hard to work with or that we’re not still searching for that person or persons to work with within the music business. On the contrary, it means that we’re a band that can just do that: everything ourselves. That’s a huge advantage, strength and showcases extreme ambition. More ambition that most artists can muster. That pretty much defines determination in most books.
Is it easier making records now than when you first made a record?  Are your demands different as you’ve gotten older and wiser:)? 
If you go back ten years or something there were only a few certain ways you could record your music. The alternatives were fewer and it was sort of the end of the big studio era. For those years we used studios and spent huge amounts of money we didn’t have on recording. The sound and end result was always in the hands of someone else.
With ‘Scarcity Rock’ we wanted to experiment with studio techniques combining different styles of recording and try to learn how to get back to basics with microphone techniques rather than using too many channels. That was very educational and opened up a different philosophy to the whole recording process. After that record, I decided I wanted to learn most of that process myself and started buying some decent microphones and stuff.
These days we have a totally different approach to recording. Especially since our bass player Tristan (since 2005) quit last year. We write a bunch of songs and when they feel ready we record the basics in a real studio, like drums, bass, whatever we have time to do. Then I take the tracks to my own studio and complete them myself. When we need songs for records we take them back to the same studio to get them mixed. It might seem more complicated but in the end, it’s little about time and money but mostly about creativity. At my studio, I can experiment with sound and find and capture the true potential of a song and be creative with it. It’s a situation I have wanted all my professional years as a musician.
You recently did the EP with Jeff Dahl how did that come about? you play some shows with him right? 
Jeff Dahl is a rare bird who has a big heart that beats for rock’n’roll. I challenge you to find a more dedicated, real and ambitious artist than him. Nothing has ever stopped him from doing his thing. You could always rely to him to manage the legacy of bands like The Stooges, New York Dolls and so on when no one else cared for that type of music. He has helped preserve that corner of rock’n’roll and kept it alive. People really should be aware of that. There was a time, in the late ’80s, early 90’s when Jeff and his music were one of few bright lights. His approach as an artist is very similar to ours. We have a lot in common both musically and philosophically. He has always been a true inspiration to us.
Jeff and I have been pen pals since our first 7″, which he gave a favourable review in his fanzine, Ultra Under. When time came for him to travel to Sweden again, mainly for intellectual reasons, we wanted to squeeze some rock’n’roll into his visit as well. He chose some songs and we rehearsed them before he came over. I wrote the song Mean Street Beat which he contributed the bridge to. Then we did one show in Stockholm. It was sparsely advertised and maybe 40 or 50 lucky people showed up. It’s already legendary.
The day after we headed into the studio to get the record done. Most of it was done more or less live with minimal overdubs. I took the recording to my studio and made some additional overdubs and stuff. Then it was mixed and mastered. Just a great experience all together. It was a true privilege to work with him on the record. We had a great time and it shines through in spades.
As a kid, I first heard Two Headed Dog in his version and discovered Roky Erickson soon after thanks to Jeff. I really wanted to do a Roky song for this record but we never got around to do it. Maybe next time.
And the split you did with The Hip Priests was a great match up what about some dates in the UK maybe with the Hip Priests who have a new album ready to go.
The Hip Priests approached us to do that one. We are really thankful to them because things snowballed a bit for us because of that record. Plus it became a great single. Their version of Hot Runnin’ Blood is so great. I love what they did to it. Without that record. I don’t think we would have been as active in 2018 as it turned out. They sort of reintroduced us to our own scene weirdly enough.
We have been talking about doing a UK tour with The Hip Priests and I am really looking forward to their new album. As it turns out we’re label mates as well now. At least in Canada.
How did you find touring America those looked like great matchups you guys with The Nomads and Fleshtones and then New Bomb Turks and Datsuns.
(It was The Dragons we toured with Stateside. Datsuns opened up on some of the shows on The Hellacopters farewell tour when we played with them.)
Touring the States was , of course,a dream come through. It was very tough though, especially the first time. We had gotten used to a certain standard in Europe and that was luxury compared to the US. Sometimes it was extremely far between the venues, food was always okay but sometimes we didn’t have anywhere to sleep. Then and again someone took us home and gave us beer and a place to crash for a few hours. Americans are great that way. Very helpful. Someone will always lend a hand. Even so ,we stood without accommodation on a few occasions. Those days were just crashing anywhere, sleeping in the car or not at all.
I fell asleep in a car i New Orleans with open windows at one time. Lucky I didn’t get killed, hehe. Vaguely I remember sleeping in an attic under an American flag and once in a coffin someone had in their house. Weird memories..
At one time we ended up at this guys house (wont tell you who) and he played us rehearsal tapes with The Stooges recorded on reel-to-reel from the time around Fun House. The tapes have never been released in any form and as an old fan it was an amazing experience to get to hear that.
The second tour we were put together with The Dragons from San Diego. They were the perfect ambassadors to the road life in the USA, toured all the time and knew every trick in the book. I guess it was the most fun tour we did over there. Hanging out with those guys was amazing. Not did they only show us the real, dirty underbelly of punk rock’n’roll America, they also showed us how to become a great live band. We learned a lot from them.
Eventually, they got signed to Gearhead as well. I guess we demanded they should be signed to the label. They just got out of some contract if memory serves me well. We had a couple of fingers in getting New Bomb Turks signed as well. No doubt about that. For a while, Gearhead had the greatest roster in the history of punk rock. “DEMONS”, Dragons, New Bomb Turks, The Hellacopters, The Hives, Turbo A.C’s, Riverboat Gamblers..
Touring with the New Bomb Turks was also great. We always pulled pranks with the bands we traveled with and at Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco we rented gorilla suits and hit the stage. Just as Elton John did with Iggy. The idea came from that. I think it was during their version of Mr. Suit. It was meant as a joke but I think Eric got genuinely scared because of some incident we didn’t know of. I remember Micke stage diving while his the head of his costume turned backwards. He was totally blind, mid air..
Mike LaVella was in on the prank we pulled on The Dragons. Mario always wore that “Who the fuck is Mick Jagger” shirt Keith had. Mike printed a few shirts with the text “Who the fuck is Mario Escovedo” which I wore at our show with them at the Casbah in San Diego. Mario was not that amused however, haha.
Our first headlining tour followed and it is by far the most intense and crazy tour we have ever done. Everything happened, we got robbed of all our gear, played motorcycle hangouts where everybody fought, even the women, got booted off Gearhead (not for doing drugs though) got lost in the desert and was held at gunpoint. That’s just the beginning of it. There’s a great live recording from the Crocodile Lounge in Seattle where the crowd chants “burn down the club” after the show since we weren’t allowed an encore. We hope to release that some day soon.
At the end we had met everybody from the Commodores to Jello Biafra, hardcore legends came out to see us, T-Model Ford opened up for us in Baltimore of all places, we got our kicks on Route 66, got seriously fucked up and never missed a show. It was great fun, chaotic, but great fun.
There are lots of stories and they would sure fill up a whole book.. Even though it was back breaking work it was an amazing experience all together.
There seems to be some great festivals in Europe featuring a lot of good bands like Hellacopters, Nomads, Turbonegro like Helldorado recently sadly not in the UK.  Is there a good appetite for high energy rock n roll in Sweden right now?
The surge for high energy rock’n’roll is coming along for sure again. There are a couple of rocking underground bands here but almost none of them are playing much in Sweden. The industry here will never accept rock’n’roll music in any form. Only if any band gets infamous or so. Media will never cover an underground band just to help out a scene or something like that. That just wont happen. Being independent has no value in Sweden. It’s more on a grass roots level.
Although we just got added to the Garage Rock Day 2019 with Electric Frankenstein headlining. It  takes place in Stockholm on the 25th of May. That, and last years Drenched in Beer festival will hopefully lead the way and make more venues interested in this type of music.
Being from the UK there was a big explosion back in the day from Scandinavia of really cool bands at a time when the UK music business was busy eating itself and there wasn’t a massive amount happening and we saw some of the bands hit our shores and I know it took off and we had some pretty good tours  from the likes of Backyard Babies, The Hellacopters, Gluecifer, Turbonegro, The Hives and Randy as well as other bands like and D4 and Datsuns (although not from Scandinavia they toured the UK at the time) off the top of my head, what was it like in Sweden at the time because obviously, you guys would have been friends right? Did it seem like things were happening or was it just isolated bands or were we getting a distorted picture? 
We toured the UK back then. Played with local bands as well as The Dirt Bombs, Moldy Lemon and more. Great times!
In Sweden, everybody hooked up with everybody in those days. Often touring bands slept at friends houses or apartments. It was intertwined in all sorts of ways you wouldn’t believe. People had parties and sometimes we would be at Nicke’s (from The Hellacopters) listening to records by the new bands on Crypt, Estrus or Sympathy. I live in a small apartment and at one time members of The Hellacopters, Entombed, Turpentines, “DEMONS” and some more people crowded my small living room partying and listening to records. I remember trying to convince Nicke to get into ska (as he liked rhythm and blues) and gave him a rare Skatalites record.
One of my best friends, Odd from The Robots (known to Hellacopters fans as the originators of Sign of the Octopus) frequently would put up Happy Tom in the independent days, They are still good friends I guess. We were hanging out with everybody coming through town. Zeke, New Bomb Turks, Queens of the Stoneage, Powder Monkeys, Chris Bailey, Guitar Wolf, you name it.. Everything centered around a record store called Freak Scene where Robban from The Hellacopters worked at one time. Freak Scene also released their second single along with a bunch of other cool stuff.
The place we usually took bands was Kvarnen on Södermalm in Stockholm. We rehearsed there in the basement together with The Nomads (who got us in), Bob Hund, The Cardigans and Atomic Swing. Robban Strings Dahlqvist’s first band, Silvermachine, were there as well. Legend said David Bowie had rehearsed there once for a show and Lou Reed also.
It was a very interesting era. Of course, the area is gentrified now and most of those hang outs are gone. Somebody bought Kvarnen, kicked everybody out and converted the basement into an orange tile covered bar where they played house music. Nothing really wrong with that. Guess it’s progress. All though It should have been converted to a museum instead with all that cuture going on.
We heard all sorts that you guys would have grants out of high school if you started a band and stuff like that we used to joke that every child in Sweden was given a high school pack that contained some creepers, a leather jacket a les paul junior and a packet of smokes I guess that wasn’t true then? 
Haha, the creepers most likely came from us, but no, there was no easy way to do it back then. There was also considerably more interest for this type of music outside of Sweden. It took a long time before Swedish journalists and media caught on and when they did only The Hellacopters was their focus. Most of the other bands had to deal with the fact that the darlings of the press were them and constantly be compared to them. We were all friends and supported each other in the beginning but to us it felt absurd to be compared to The Hellacopters. Mostly because we, from the start, were isolated and alone on our turf with the influence of all that music that was also claimed by them a few years later. We love The Hellacopters though.
There was this weird self-promoting media culture in Sweden that I guess is hard to understand if you’re not Swedish. Back in the day most all of the more influential music journalists were more interested in writing something sensational and creating a buzz around something than actually covering a scene or some type of music. Some of that self-indulgent culture is still apparent in Swedish music media today. National radio, which is funded by tax money, only play major label crap. Anyone with an underground band knows what I’m talking about.
I mentioned the record you did last year on Ghost Highway with Jeff and you recently mentioned that you just finished up a new “Demons” album any idea when we can see this get released? tell us a bit about the new record?  where was it recorded – producer – any details of the songs or possible title?  
Yeah, there is a new album on the way. The title is Kiss Off and it contains a whole batch of new songs plus a bunch of re-recorded titles from our most recent records. It will be released through God’s Candy Records in April with Get Hip distributing. Most of the basics were recorded in Studio Dubious in Stockholm during different sessions in 2018. Then it was completed and finished in my studio and again mixed in Dubious in Stockholm. I guess we recorded about 70 percent of it ourselves just like the last album, Scarcity Rock.
It’s gonna be our first full length since 2010. The material is maybe a tad more varied and definitely more song-oriented. Someone said it was melodic but it’s more brutal and heavy as well. What can I say? It’s our sound and our style, I can’t really compare it to anything now since it’s so fresh. They are just songs written over a period of two years or something. Personally, as a songwriter, I think it’s the best bunch of songs I’ve written. It is a damn fine album and one of our most focused ever. Hopefully, people will take it to their hearts and join us for the ride.
We kind of decided when we picked up playing again that we never would do another full-length album and only focus on smaller releases on independent labels. That was my ambition anyway. Albums always took too much work and then they never ended up as you wanted. Suddenly we were doing one anyway and I’m glad we did because it’s gonna be a great rock’n’roll record. One of our best.
A lot of this had to do with God’s Candy Records. Brett who runs the label really has an enormous ambition and loves vinyl and its possibilities as an art form as much as we do.
It seems like a great time to be in music as there is so much great music all over the place at the moment people complain about it not getting big but there is plenty out there making fantastic records 
I think what’s happening now is a new growing underground culture that builds on the ’90s, early 00’s high energy and garage punk movements that “DEMONS” had quite a decent part in developing. At least from a Scandinavian perspective. I hope it stays underground.
Sal from Electric Frankenstein is doing a new set of Fistful of Rock’n’roll compilations who showcases the width of what is happening. He took on an incredible task and has done an amazing job. As long as bands are managing themselves, bookers book shows and independent labels put out records it’s great. I think the internet provides a direct communication possibility that has never really been there before. That’s how you can keep it on a grassroots level and still make it work between all parties.
I guess most bands have that dream of making it big. But as I stated earlier you got to figure out why you are playing music. If you want to be a star and make serious money maybe you should go the other way, play some commercial music and find a producer who will shape your sound to something that is playable on the radio. Or just find something else to do that is more commercially viable than playing music. Plus I think that aiming for the majors is a philosophy that is a bit out of date and not very modern. But then again, if you find a major label that fully supports you and your philosophy there isn’t a problem.
what inspires you to keep making music. 
I have music in my head 24 hours a day, always wake up with a song in my head. When I write I usually drink four cups of coffee, put on a record, have the TV on and a couple of books lying around. Then I just start working. That has always been my preferred way to get things done and it’s been that way all my life.
I also buy a lot of records and listen to a lot of music. But I always preferred artists that showcase a little darkness and need to channel real emotions. Everything inspires me in different ways.
Being part of great split records and collaborating with legends like Jeff Dahl is there anything you’d like to fulfill somewhere you’d like to play or someone you’d love to work with?
When I started out I had a long list of people I would have loved to work with. Mostly old idols. These days I will work with anyone who is passionate about what they’re doing as long as it works philosophically. We’ll work with anybody who has a great idea. It’s about creating great stuff. After all these years I just love to work with small labels and people who are driven by dedication and love for music. That is the real reward.
Finally, if there is anything you’d like to tell the readers or promote feel free that’s what we’re here for.  
Stay sick and keep keepin’ on.
Keep an eye out for that new record that is coming out soon I’m sure RPM will be at the front of the queue to cover it and hopefully, some live shows around the place would be nice. A massive Thank you to Matheus for taking the time and sharing his personal pictures and thoughts. Also to Jeff Dahl for hooking us up much appreciated my friend.

Degeneration Hotel, Las Vegas Shakedown

Degeneration Hotel, Las Vegas Shakedown, 2001

Posted by "DEMONS" on Friday, 15 February 2019

Daddies – EP 1 (Bandcamp)

Daddies – EP 1 (Bandcamp)

So when this band appeared on the RPM radar with a debut four-track EP and coming outta Jersey where previous favs have cut the mustard we thought we’d hit the play button and check em out even if they do exceed the facial hair rules around these parts but hey, rules are meant to be broken and punk rock isn’t meant to have rules so cut em some slack right? Right. So where were we? oh yeah, Jersey and hipster bearing cassette tapes so you might be forgiven for thinking. Well, don’t forget not that many moons ago Jersey gave us Baldy Long Hair and The Disconnects and Crazy And The Brains all hailing from New Jersey so Daddies are go!

‘She Sings’ kicks off proceedings like The Who jamming on The Ramones and if there is a Jersey vibe going on then its in the DNA With plenty of noise and a catchy hook with what amounts to a really great song and its got handclaps so its a no brainer for me and who doesn’t love a gang vocal and some woohoos?

Next up ‘Heart’  is a steady thump on the floor tom and way to go as the guitars jump in away we go.  It sounds as if it was recorded with very few if any takes or overdubs and its all about capturing the moment and the magic that just taking a deep breath and hitting record brings and boy have they nailed it.  Sure they’re not reinventing any wheels here they’re just playing some great garage punk rock n roll and giving it as much love as possible and we certainly like that round here.

‘Die’ is a little more aggressive,  but I love it and the sound to the melody and the right amount of snot is bang on the money from the Damned like guitar breaks after the lyrics to the chorus it’s excellent.  How do you follow that punk rock chaos of ‘Die’ well with an acoustic strum of course but fear not punk rockers it doesn’t last.  Once the band joins in we head out the door signposted fuzzy garage exit here and hell we like it and it shows that Daddies have variety and can shake it up.  As this is a little taster RPM gives it both thumbs up and hope that it’s not ‘Goodbye’ but see ya later.  We want more and we want it pretty soon so if you could oblige gents we’d be delighted to give it a spin and show it off… Oh and have a shave its a good example to the kids and it causes mummy to have a rash.

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"She Sings" by Daddies – BTR Live Studio [ep781]

Daddies is a super fun garage punk ‘n roll band from New Jersey. With catchy hooks, sexy rhythms, and lyrics you can’t help but get down with, the band is an instant good time. They invaded Serious Business Music in Brooklyn to give us a sweet full-frontal assault on our senses in this session.Daddies EP is available now on cassette from King Pizza Records.Listen to the audio podcast for more music and interview: https://b-t-r.co/2GamKea

Geplaatst door BTRtoday op Vrijdag 8 februari 2019

Beauty In Chaos – ‘Finding Beauty In Chaos’ (33.3 Music Collective)

Beauty In Chaos – ‘Finding Beauty In Chaos’ (33.3 Music Collective)

The brainchild of Human Drama/Gene Loves Jezebel guitarist Michael Ciravolo, Beauty In Chaos is a goth-tastic supergroup project that brings together legendary names from the likes of The Mission, The Cure, Gene Loves Jezebel, Cheap Trick and Ministry to contribute on their debut album ‘Finding Beauty In Chaos’.

Influenced by the like of My Bloody Valentine, The Cocteau Twins and Lush, the LA-based guitar slinger hooked up his delay and reverb pedals joined forces with Ministry producer Michael Rozon and set about creating soundscapes rich in gothic goodness. Then enlisted the help of various musical acquaintances, such as Michael Aston, Wayne Hussey and Al Jourgensen, to add their own unique talents.

 

Opener ‘Road To Rosario’ sets the scene. With Michael Aston taking lead vocals, it unsurprisingly comes on like a lost Gene loves Jezebel cut as haunting, effect-ridden guitars weave in and out between a pounding bass line and lush distinctive vocals. A crisp production job ensures no sound goes unnoticed as guitars and vocals build in unison to create a killer opener.

Up next, ‘The Storm’ is the first of a trio of tracks to feature The Awakening main man Ashton Nyte on vocals. Atmospheric and emotive old school Goth, just the way we like it, baby! Later on, he opens his dark soul on the nomadic, Eastern tinged ‘Bloodless & Fragile’ and the moody closing title track. These tracks would not sound out of place on The Crow soundtrack.

Al Jourgensen lends his dulcet tones to an industrial tinged take on T Rex’s ‘20th Century Boy’ and pulls it off with ease, while the unmistakable vocals of The Mission main man Wayne Hussey are perfect for ‘The Long Goodbye’ and the simply enthralling ‘Man Of Faith’ (also featuring the talents of The Cure bassist Simon Gallup), possibly the stand out tune of the day for me.

Human Drama vocalist Johnny Indovina adds ethereal Bowie textures to ‘Memory Of Love’ and Ville Valo romanticism to ‘Beauty Lies Within’.

There’s a couple of unexpected diamonds in amongst the black ashes that permeate this collection of dark, gothic goodness. Namely, the power pop of ‘Drifting Away’, featuring an on form Robin Zander and top backing vocals courtesy of a certain Michael Anthony amongst others. Then Dug Pinnick and Ice T pump up the volume to industrial levels for ‘Un-Natural Disaster’, a song that retains the de-tuned, grungy feel of King’s X, while the spoken word rap of Ice T takes things down a darker street.

 

Collaborative musical projects run the risk of losing direction and focus, but Ciravolo takes the signature sound of each vocalist and adds his own textures to create an outstanding work of art that is both dark and cinematic and flows as a complete album.

‘Finding Beauty In Chaos’ is an album that celebrates the alternative late 80’s and puts a modern, edgy twist on a genre that has a place in the dark hearts of rockers, ravers and lovers the world over.

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Carlyle, Bath & Ragany play Aces & Eights ticket details

Carlyle, Bath & Ragany play Aces & Eights ticket details

Running Blue is a Promotional and live concert booker that give a shit about Rock n Roll and is happy to bring to London an extraordinary evenings entertainment  courtesy of Mr Darrell Bath (The Crybabys) And Mr Rob Carlyle (The Compulsions) as these two Rock n Rollers from both sides of the pond play some tunes from their respective back catalogues as well as others.  They’ll be joined on the evening by Rich Ragany as they did last year for a sold-out show.  Tickets are limited so we suggest you get on it right away to avoid disappointment.

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Darrell Bath The Compulsions Rich Ragany & The Digressions

As well as this show Running Blue have several other events please visit their facebook page to keep u to date with their shows and support them supporting live music

 

The Quireboys cancel their Pledge Campaign with immediate Effect…

The Quireboys cancel their Pledge Campaign with immediate Effect…

The Quireboys are the latest band to pull the plug on their Pledge Music campaign they released the following press statement,

“We’ve been watching this all play out very closely and have tried to work in any way possible with Pledge to arrive at a positive outcome but in reality, we are just not confident that the campaign we entered into with Pledge, will ever be fulfilled or paid and that is something we cant continue to endorse.

This was all brought to light recently with other key bands (who were also involved in Pledge Campaigns) pointing out that they haven’t been paid or look likely to be. We have recorded and mastered our new album ‘Amazing Disgrace’, we have booked the PR, videos, pressing, we have received nothing and we never will under this platform.

We have written to Pledge today asking them to officially cancel the campaign and let us know who booked what, once we have that we will be in touch via our label Off Yer Rocka Recordings who have kindly funded our costs in the interim period to keep this incredible recording alive.

The band Last in Line posted some great advice the other day about cancelling your Pledge booking which you should do immediately. If you didn’t see it, we’ve used some of their words:

We are told that PledgeMusic’s cancellation process has been initiated. The refund process will go through Pledges’ payment processor Bluesnap. Fans can also directly dispute the charge with their credit card company.  At this time our recommendation is that you also log into your PledgeMusic account and cancel your order.  We would suggest that you take an additional step of contacting your credit card company to request buyer protection and further ensure the charges to PledgeMusic are reversed.

To CANCEL YOUR PLEDGE ORDER:

  • LOG IN to PledgeMusic and FIND your order.
  • Click on “CONTACT US ABOUT THIS PLEDGE” then pull down the menu item “CANCELLING THIS PLEDGE ORDER”
  • Click on “I STILL HAVE A QUESTION”
  • In the form that opens type that “I AM CANCELLING THIS PLEDGE, AND AM REQUESTING A REFUND DUE TO THE CAMPAIGN BEING CANCELLED”
  • You will receive a confirmation email from them immediately
  • Now PLEASE call your credit card and request a “CHARGE DISPUTE” as additional insurance for your refund.

We are truly gutted that this has come about, you all supported us above and beyond, especially getting us over 200%, however, we’re simply not into finger pointing or blame culture, its happened and we need to deal with it, firstly you must do the above, once that has been completed we can move onto the Solution…

Our label ‘Off Yer Rocka Recordings’ has now loaded all items that people were buying through Pledge and loaded them onto ‘The Quireboys’ section of the label site. OYR will now press and fulfil any new orders that come into this platform. What’s more and as a gesture of goodwill from The Quireboys and OYR, for any item purchased we will be offering an album free of charge from our back catalogue which we will deliver at the same time.

The New album can be purchased Here

Guy Griffin video message – Here

Jim Jones & The Righteous Mind – Collectiv (MaSonic Records)

Jim Jones & The Righteous Mind – Collectiv (MaSonic Records)

It’s been a while since ‘Super Natural’ and its been a while since the news broke that Jim Jones was heading down the long winding crowdfunding road for the new record, last June to be precise.  Well, the wait is over the record is finally here. This takes off where ‘Super Natural’ left off and some. Sure there is no great departure just a lot more time has been afforded by going down the crowdfunding route and its paid off in spades for this is easily Jims most complete collection of music to date and I include Thee Hypnotics and the Revue in that.  It includes everything – emotionally and physically by the sounds of it, there is even Keith Richards Gibson acoustic in there throughout like the main artery carrying the lifeblood that this record needs to survive.

‘Sex Robot’ yeah if your introducing your new record might as well go in like a stick of dynamite hitting the death decks and boy does ‘Sex Robot’ deliver a pulsating introduction. From the first fuzzed out riff through the handclaps and throbbing snare slap this record is off and the opening track is setting the bar right up there with a full on aural assault on your senses. Stomping rhythm and like a clenched fist The Righteous Mind means business Its a rock n roll call to arms enough is enough let’s do this.  If that didn’t get your blood pumping then a side step to the left sees the Dirty Blues Gospel of ‘Satans Got His Heart Set On You’ is up next.

Step forward with that piano and saxophone as Jones does what Jones does over the top of such a swinging groove and remember to join in on the chorus. Keeping up the intensity yet displaying another side of this band yet in keeping with the roots of Rock n Roll the saxophone steals in and quite literally blows my mind as the duelling keys and sax makes this already; a contender.  As we settle in ‘O Genie’ has some needle in the red, fuzzed up geetar as we purposefully slide through the verses like a snake on the prowl there is a menace to the song as it glides toward the Asian rhythm and Jim  almost whispers the verse into your ear its intense and terrifying at the same time but you don’t want to turn it off just let it wash over you.

Proceedings head back towards the most Rock and Roll of songs with ‘Attack Of The Killer Brainz’ riding in on a massive big riff for an awesome slice of RnR that is always most welcome. the downside of all that Rock n Roll sees ‘Meth Chuch’ enter the fray like a misty morning. Gentle creep crawling through West London Jones tells a Bowie esk tale of one night under the shadow of Grenfell Tower the song perfectly captures the mood and eery use of strings is a captivating number.

Again the pace and sense of drama are captured on the slow-moving ‘Dark Secrets’ as Jones lowers the tone quite literally with hushed vocals the arrangement is captivating and perfectly executed. ‘I Found Love’ is a little Gospel meets Rock and Roll and Jones reaches into his soul to raise the roof with his wild vocal as the cymbals lead the rhythm. ‘I Found Love’ is the appetizer for ‘Out Align’ as the amps are given a right rinsing through the steady beat.

As we enter the last knockings of this new record I can’t help but feel I’ve been on a journey through a musical landscape that felt so good in such trying times. There is a light at the end of the austerity tunnel and Jim Jones and the Righteous Mind will lead us there if you let them in. ‘Going There Anyway’ is a mellow jazzy number with some fine lap steel and six string bending going on another smokey number before ‘Shazam’ puts the full stop on what is a most excellent record it twists and turns like a river flowing with rock n roll as it twists and turns and leaves gold deposits at every bend and as the listener navigates his way down to reach the end is exhilarating and rewarding and with 100 influences peppering the veins of the songs this will easily be near the top of any end of year top album list no doubt about that.

‘Collectiv’ should excite you as it has me. what you do next is a no brainer, click the link and place your order and let ‘Collectiv’ hit your speakers like a bomb going off you can thank me later but for now do the right thing, go on you know you want to.

Buy ‘Collectiv’ Here

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Author: Dom Daley

Jim Jones & The Righteous Mind album launch gig at the 100 Club with Vive Le Rock

To celebrate the release of our new album, 'CollectiV', we’re playing a special Vive Le Rock-sponsored show with special guest musicians and DJs at London's The 100 Club on Thursday, March 21st. Tickets are shifting fast so get yours from www.righteousmind.co.uk. Early arrivers will also get entered into a draw to win goodie bags. See you there!

Geplaatst door Jim Jones and the Righteous Mind op Vrijdag 15 februari 2019

A Touch Too Much – Gone But Not Forgotten

A Touch Too Much – Gone But Not Forgotten

On this very day in 1980, Ronald Belford “Bon” Scott was found dead in Camden London. Scott was the iconic hellraising singer of AC/DC and was the epitome of hard rockin, hard-partying rock and roller.  Nothing was half measure with Scott. It was alleged that On 15 February 1980, Scott attended a session where Malcolm and Angus Young who were working on the beginnings of two songs that would later be recorded on the Back in Black album; “Have a Drink On Me” and “Let Me Put My Love Into You” with Scott accompanying on drums rather than singing or writing lyrics.

Days earlier, Scott had gone with Mick Cocks to visit their friends the French group Trust in the Scorpio Sound studio in London where they recorded the album ‘Répression’; Scott was working on the English adaptation of texts by Bernie Bonvoisin for the English version of the album. During this visit, the musicians did a jam session of “Ride On”. This improvised session was Scott’s last recording.

Sometime during the evening of 18 February and early morning of 19 February, Scott passed out and died at the age of 33. He had just visited a London club called the Music Machine (currently known as KOKO) at the end of Camden High Street opposite Mornington Crescent Tube Station. He was left to sleep in a Renault 5 owned by a friend of Scott’s, Alistair Kinnear, at 67 Overhill Road in East Dulwich. Later that day, Kinnear found Scott lifeless and alerted the authorities. Scott was taken to King’s College Hospital in Camberwell, where he was pronounced DOA. It sent shockwaves through the industry at the time but the band soldiered on to reach greater success with a new singer (Cough Cough) Brian Johnson formerly of the band Geordie.  ‘Back In Black’ is one of the biggest selling rock albums of all time but the heart and soul had left the building when Scott passed and the band were never the same again, Scott’s tenure in the band produced  over half a dozen classic albums that pioneered boogie rock n roll with an incredible voice Scott will rightfully be remembered as a legend in hard rock.  R.I.P Bon.

Scott was born in Kirriemuir, Scotland, and emigrated to Melbourne, Australia with his family in 1952 He was six at the time. Scott started the Spektors in 1966 as the drummer the band then merged with another local band to form the Valentines who had a top 30 hit singe before breaking up due to a drug scandal or as the band put it at the time “Musical Differences”.  Scott then moved to Adelaide where he joined Fraternity. on 3 May 1974, at the Old Lion Hotel in North Adelaide, during a rehearsal with the Mount Lofty Rangers, a very drunk Scott had a raging argument with a member of the band. Scott stormed out of the venue, threw a bottle of Jack Daniel’s on to the ground, then sped off on his motorbike. Scott suffered serious injuries from the ensuing motorcycle accident, spending three days in a coma and a further 18 days in the hospital. It was during his recovery where he worked at the office of Vince Lovegrove who ran a talent and booking agency which was where Scott was introduced to the Youngs due to them being on the lookout for a lead singer and the rest, as they say, is history.

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On a Much lighter note a big Happy Birthday to Black Sabbaths Tony Iommi who was born on this day back in 1948. When a young Iommi was working in a sheet metal factory it was to be his last day at the job he managed to lose the tip of his middle finger and his ring finger of his right hand. He had to create thimbles to go on his fingertips so he could play the guitar this was after he attempted to play right-handed – remember health & safety at work kids and never play around with heavy machinery on Heavy Metal!

On this very same day in 1982 Iommis, former bandmate Ozzy managed to get himself arrested in San Antonio, Texas for urinating on the cenotaph at the Alamo, which honours the Alamo defenders. Osbourne was wearing a dress at the time of his arrest, (due to his wife Sharon hiding all his clothes so he couldn’t go outside). Osbourne was banned from ever playing in San Antonio, Texas again, (a ban which was lifted in 1992). When later interviewed, Ozzy said his next goal was to urinate on the White House lawn. Ozzy is pictured leaving the Sanantonio Court House with his stylish wife and manager Sharon

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Swervedriver – Futures Ruin (Rock Action Records)

Swervedriver – Futures Ruin (Rock Action Records)

With shoegaze enjoying something of a revival in recent years, many long-standing champions of the genre have upped their activity. Swervedriver were often on the heavier end of the spectrum, and whilst they haven’t always been the most prolific in terms of number of album releases (an extended pause following their breakup in 1998 didn’t help), they did return successfully in 2015 with ‘I Wasn’t Born to Lose You’.

‘Future Ruins’ largely continues on from its predecessor, delivering a strong record with many of the elements sure to keep fans of the band happy. The album kicks off of with one of the finest tracks here, the brilliant ‘Mary Winter’.  The strong riff and atmospheric melodies are demonstrative of a band in great form, writing music that will tune in directly to their fan base. ‘The Lonely Crowd Fades in the Air’ offers more of that energy before the title track takes the album in a slower and equally enjoyable direction.

Things pick up with ‘Drone Lover’, which oozes pop-laden brilliance, whilst ‘Spiked Flower’ joyfully propels the album forwards before the record eventually lulls a bit with ‘Everybody’s Going Somewhere & No-One’s Going Anywhere’ and ‘Golden Remedy’. Whilst the former particularly may be a bit hard to get into for the casual listener, these two tracks do add some extra layers to the album. The recovery is quick, however, and in style with ‘Good Times Are Hard to Follow’ before the lengthy otherworldliness of ‘Radio-Silent’ takes us to a dreamy end.

‘Future Ruins’ is a strong album and fans of the band will surely be instantly drawn to its infectious hooks and harmonies. And after 4 years since their previous release, the freshness will certainly be welcomed.

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The Wildhearts release first track off brand new long player and tour dates

The Wildhearts release first track off brand new long player and tour dates
The Wildhearts 
release Dislocated 
the first song from their forthcoming new album 
Listen Here
  

The Wildhearts release Dislocated, the first song from their forthcoming album ‘Renaissance Men’. Listen to the cathartic Dislocated 

On 3rd May ‘Renaissance Men’, The Wildhearts’  first full-length studio album in 10 years is released by Graphite Records.

The Wildhearts’ classic line up of Ginger, CJ, Ritchie and Danny, recorded the energetic and diverse ‘Renaissance Men’ at the Treehouse Studio. Produced by Jim Pinder  ‘Renaissance Men’ finds The Wildhearts at their full creative tilt delivering hard-hitting, retooled classic rock with a modern twist.  Bristling riffs and jagged, riotous hooks are their poison and the 10 songs are the perfect manifestation of the band’s immutable wit, charm and righteous anger.

The album cover for ‘Renaissance Men’ was painted by Eliran Kantor (Testament, Iced Earth, Sodom).

The honest and irresistible ‘Renaissance Men’ is an unequivocal triumph, which encapsulates and distils perfectly The Wildhearts’ live energy.
To pre order ‘Renaissance Men’  and stream Dislocated go Here
The album is available to pre-order in usual CD and vinyl, with T-Shirt bundles available, plus in exclusive limited edition transparent red vinyl and orange tape cassette formats. iTunes preorders will receive Dislocated as an instant track download.
‘Renaissance Men’ track listing 
01 Dislocated.
02 Let ‘Em Go.
03 The Renaissance Men.
04 Fine Art of Deception.
05 Diagnosis.
06 My Kinda Movie.
07 Little Flower.
08 Emergency (Fentanyl Babylon).
09 My Side Of The Bed.
10 Pilo Erection.

 

To coincide with the release of ‘Renaissance Men’  The Wildhearts play an 8 date UK tour. This intimate tour will start in Manchester at the Academy 2 on Friday 3rd May and concludes at the Riverside in Newcastle on Sunday 12th May.

“Well fuck me it’s only been 10 years since our last release and we have a monster album on its way. Danny is back in the band and we hit the road in May, playing new tunes and all the old hits. Can’t wait and I know the boys are super bloody excited for this. ROCK!” – CJ Wildheart 
Before the Renaissance Men UK tour, The Wildhearts play 2 festivals: the Winters End 2019 in Chepstow and Great British Alternative Festival in Minehead, plus a special warm up show at the Exeter Cavern on Friday 8th March, which is sold out.

Creatively brilliant, The Wildhearts play a distinctive fusion of hard rock, perfectly complemented by contemporary melodies. With a career spanning 30 years The Wildhearts helped change the landscape of British rock through the ’90s, and to this day they haven’t shown any sign of slowing down. Miss these shows at your peril.

The Wildhearts March tour dates
Fri  8th        Exeter Cavern    SOLD OUT 
Sat  9th        Winters End 2019
Sun 10th Minehead Great Brit Alternative Fest

The Renaissance Men May UK tour dates
Fri 3rd  Manchester  Academy 2
Sat 4th Edinburgh  Liquid Room
Mon 6th Cardiff  Tramshed
Tue 7th Bristol  SWX
Thur 9th London Brixton Electric
Fri  10th Norwich  Waterfront
Sat  11th Leeds Stylus
Sun  12th Newcastle  Riverside
Tickets are available Here
The Wildhearts are also playing:
May
Thur 23rd  Blackpool, Waterloo Music Bar SOLD OUT
Fri 24th Derbyshire, Bearded Theory’s Spring Gathering
Sat 25th Lincoln, Call of the Wild Festival
Sun 26th Sudbury, LeeStock Music Festival
July
Fri 19th  Ramblin’ Man Fair