Admin

Total Post: 3652

A turbocharged Rock and Roll website.

Dreamer Nothing But A Dreamer…

Dreamer Nothing But A Dreamer…

A band that were once heralded as the next big thing by Kerrang (back when Kerrang used to have decent bands grace its pages) faded away then basked in the afterglow as a resurgence saw them tread the boards and release a few fantastic albums and the band got more column inches purely on merit and the strength of the albums they were writing and shows they were playing find themselves upon the crest of a wave and when Someone asks how would you fancy having a chat With one of two of the original members, of course, I was going to accept so here without further waffle from me ladies and Gents I give you slyder Smith from Last Of The Great Dreamers.

Firstly 2018 couldn’t have gone any better, could it?  With the critically acclaimed album and some great shows, you must be pleased? We’ll get to the latest album but first a quick catch up of sorts, After the first album and the lengthy hiatus, you got together for a few shows take us back. Was there a great master plan?

Not initially, Marc & I got back in touch again over a few chance meetings back in 2012. We talked on the phone but didn’t discuss getting the band back together then. It wasn’t until a bit later I rediscovered the tracks on cassette we’d recorded after Retrosexual in the mid/late 90s & thought they were too good not to be released. There seemed to be a bit of a rejuvenated rock scene out there so when we did decide to put LGD back together it began to gather momentum then.

Firstly we decided to release those tracks as ‘Crash Landing in Teenage Heaven’ to coincide with our reunion show in London in September 2014.

 

‘Retrosexual’ came out in 1994 and then what?  You were heralded by the press such as Kerrang what happened then?

Kerrang heralded us as ‘Glams great white hopes’, we were nominated for “best new band” at the Kerrang Awards 1995. It was an exciting time; we had the record deal, an agent, manager, all we’d been working for since forming in 1989. We did a few European tours with Bang Tango & Warrant & everything was happening. We got out of our deal with Bleeding Hearts Records & had lots of interest from labels through our new manager. We pursued one with a large independent, X Records. It was a 2 single deal with a sizable advance. Things were taking their course & at the 11th hour, the deal collapsed through funding so fell through.

Although we pushed on a bit after that I think the moment had passed, our manager quit the business completely & we were left trying to pick up the pieces & salvage something. Eventually, we decided to call it a day, sadly our creativity was at a peak at that point but we were just emotionally drained by the whole thing.

 

Since you got back together was there a plan?  You seem to have worked harder and harder and played plenty of dates all over the place and if you don’t mind me saying got better and better as songwriters as well would that be fair? ‘Dope School’ and ‘Glitterball Apocalypse’ were two of the best songs you’ve written in my opinion. Great videos as well. 

Once we’d done the comeback show & a handful of others we did a 12 date club tour in April 2015 still promoting the Crash Landing album. Marc & I had discussed new material & it was that summer we started writing together again. In actual fact Glitterball & Dope were probably the first two we worked on. It was a bit daunting at first as I stopped playing for about 10 years & hadn’t written anything since about 2002. As soon as we started though it kept flowing resulting in the  Transmissions from Oblivion album released in 2016. We also set about trying to get onto festivals & tours. The first was with Cherie Currie(The Runaways) in November 2015. This was when we released our first ‘brand new’ single Dope School since reforming.

How did the business change for you or was it more you changing how you viewed the business?

It has changed massively since we were doing it before, obviously no internet back then, digital releases or social media. I think the product is devalued a lot because of that but it is very easy to get your product out there & connect with people but with that, the market place is flooded with bands so there’s a lot more competition.

 

 

‘Transmission From Oblivion’, was another advance in songs and a really strong album, you picked up some great tours with the likes of the Quireboys which would be fair to say is a great fit for the band, was having a steady line up a plus at the time with Denley on drums must have been a massive plus?

The Transmission album was the first new album proper since reforming. It was probably 75% brand new plus Marc & I had a few songs we had in our lockers that we’d written after LGD split that were rejuvenated. That was released in late 2016 & we secured the Quireboys tour just after for the following Spring. That tour was a great fit, we played to some brilliant audiences over about 20 dates & won over a lot of new fans.

Having a steady line-up is definitely very important, we do have a few different bass players that play with us live which isn’t ideal but we get by. It’s a big commitment at this level to do what we do; financially it’s a struggle plus juggling homelife is also difficult. Sadly after 3 years with us, Denley has had to take a step back from touring for this reason as the band gets busier & busier. We do have a new man in, also from South Wales, Rik Pratt, along with a new bass player Tim Emery who will be the number 1, you may see deps in every now & then but that’s just the nature of it at this level.

 

What about the songwriting.  Do you work differently these days compared to the first time around? What motivates you? To keep the constant touring, writing and releasing records?

Things are slightly different this time around, especially Renegades which was pretty much written over a period of 3 or 4 months whereas the 1st two albums – the songs kind of accumulated over years. We collaborate on lyrics perhaps more now than we did but I guess the formula we have is that Marc & I will usually work on our own ideas & then bring them to the table each adding bits to each other’s songs. We would sometimes have a clear vision of how we thought a song would end up but also hear different things in each other’s ideas. We would then knock them into shape a bit before bringing in the rhythm section to fine-tune the arrangements & try out different feels & tempos.

I think having started writing again & realising we can still do this it has become very exciting, we are very proud of what we’ve done since reforming & feel each album we have made bettered the last so I guess that drives us to keep doing it. Also, we love playing live & want to reach more & more people & travel to different places. We’ve made a lot of friends & new fans on the road & really enjoy meeting & touring with other bands, it’s a great feeling & what it’s all about.

The last album, in my opinion, was the bands finest and a consistently strong record where the bands sounded really confident and you knew the songs were excellent.  Is it something you notice when writing or recording?

I think we were feeling confident whilst writing & arranging in the rehearsal studio. We knew we had some real gems there. The songs all develop differently, some quicker than others, some easier than others. As you go along that journey adding harmonies & guitar parts they evolve & develop & quite often there will be moments when you think wow this is going to be amazing!

 

You did some great shows in 2018 off the back of the new album what can we expect in 2019?  tours the UK and further afield?  what are your hopes for the coming year?

We have a lot of dates planned for the year, mostly during the Spring, we are on a European tour with Enuff Znuff in February & reaching a few new countries like Austria, Italy & Sweden, We return to both Norway & Spain this year & have a UK tour opening for the Electric Boys. Plus some other dates & festivals throughout the summer. We just want to keep reaching more people & getting our music heard as much as possible. Also November this year it will be 25 years since the release of our debut, Retrosexual so we may do something special for that, a one-off show maybe with an anniversary release on vinyl?

Finally how many new songs are written and are there plans to get back into a studio this year?

We’ve discussed album number five & both have some songs we’ve started working on individually. Hopefully, we will get together for a writing session together over the summer & at the moment we have some free time in the autumn to maybe start recording.

Website

Facebook

Live shots were taken by Tom Gold, Goldwood Images

Happy Birthday Brian James & other news

Happy Birthday Brian James & other news

Happy Birthday Brian James the guy who kickstarted punk in London –  Hell he Invented UK Punk for God’s sake even The Captain says as much. Brian was the force behind The Damned who were the first to do this first to do that – The FIRST! remember that.

It didn’t end there for Brian Who when he left The Damned (the band he started) he went on to play for Iggy Pop then put together his own supergroup – The Lords Of The New Church. Before heading out under his own name.

Born in In Hammersmith in 1955.  Brian Robertson as he was christened first came to prominence when he picked up the guitar alongside fellow punk icons Mick Jones (the Clash) and Brady (Hollywood Brats) under the banner SS London, he then formed The Damned and the rest, as they say, is history.  I don’t think Brian or The Damned ever got the props they truly deserved and history has ushered The Pistols and The Clash to the top of the pile yet it was The Damned led by Brian that reached all the firsts and has remained punk to the core until this day where he still writes and occasionally plays.

 

If you don’t know Brians style then you’ve not really heard real punk rock from the first chords of ‘New Rose’ to his unique style on ‘Grand Cru’ or ‘The Guitar That Dripped Blood’ Brian has always done things on his own terms and stayed true to himself.  He has an impeccable CV and a list of albums he’s played on that can go toe to toe with any of his peers no question about it.

Buy Brian James: Here

Brian switched from his Les Paul to the Telecaster and that drag as seen on the Lords footage is what sets the great from the good.

Ten years after Brian James popped into the world Ray and Dave Davies as The Kinks were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with ‘Tired Of Waiting For You’, the group’s second UK No.1. According to Ray Davies, the music for ‘Tired of Waiting for You’ was written on the train to the recording studio and the words were written at a coffee shop during a break in the session. So let that be a lesson pop pickers last minute changes can work.

On a sadder note on this day in 1995 Replacements guitarist, Bob Stinson passed away. Stinson was found in his apartment in Uptown Minneapolis. Bob was only 35. He founded The Replacements with Chris Mars and His Brother Tommy and later roped in Westerberg. He lasted up until the sessions for ‘Pleased To Meet Me’ before leaving due to creative differences Now this stacks up more than for his drug or alcohol use C’mon this was the Replacements.

The band headed down a more commercial route after Bob left but he hadn’t finished with music quite yet as he Went on to form Model Prisoner with Sonny Vincent, Static Taxi who recorded two albums.  In a rather amusing anecdote, Vincent remembered a time when former Dead Boy Cheetah Chrome relocated to Minneapolis to play in shotgun rationale “quite insane for a while… You have to imagine a band consisting of both Bob Stinson and Cheetah Chrome playing and working together.. then add to that I was no angel and you start to get a glimpse of the mercurial energy and intense chaos that we lived in, it didn’t last long but it was like living in a constant lightning storm and the sound was the same, tight and concentrated but always exploding over the edge”. Stinson didn’t die of a drug overdose but the frequent drug use caused his overall health to diminish, resulting in organ failure. So if you get the chance put on one of those early Mats records or Model Prisoner and toast a life most certainly lived. Rest In Peace Bob Stinson.

Buy Bob Stinson Here

Rainy Days & Mondays…

Rainy Days & Mondays…

As it Brian James Birthday we thought we’d do things a little differently today and pay tribute to the guitar Legend by playing three videos from his immense career starting with his genius riff that was ‘Methods To My Madness’

The Brian James Gang tear New Rose a new one

Finally, we thought we’d delve deeper sadly there isn’t a video we could find so we brought you this hidden gem as we all say, Happy Birthday Brian James!

There’s no business like show business…

There’s no business like show business…

On this most rockin’ of days way back in 1975, AC/DC released their debut album ‘High Voltage’. The album featured a cover of ‘Baby, Please Don’t Go’ a blues song first recorded by Big Joe Williams and ‘She’s Got Balls’ which was written about singer Bon Scott’s ex-wife Irene – the first AC/DC song for which he wrote lyrics.

Bon, Malcolm, Angus, Mark and Phil saw this record peak at number 14 but has since gone 5x platinum what you could describe as being a slow burner.

Originally released on Albert Productions in Australia and has never been reissued by another label in this format. The international version of High Voltage, which was issued on Atlantic Records in 1976, has different cover art and track listing, with only “She’s Got Balls” and “Little Lover” appearing overseas. “Baby Please Don’t Go”, “Soul Stripper”, “You Ain’t Got a Hold On Me” and “Show Business” was later released on ’74 Jailbreak in 1984. “Stick Around” (about Scott’s inability to hold onto a lover for more than one night) and “Love Song” have been released on Backtracks in 2009. The title and artwork were the suggestion of Chris Gilbey of Albert Productions. In the 1994 Scott biography Highway to Hell, Gilbey explains that he came up with the concept of “an electricity substation with a dog pissing against it. It’s so tame now, but back then we thought it was pretty revolutionary.”

The musicians that played on this release were quite different from the internationally famous line up of AC/DC – George Young who also produced the record played some bass guitar, rhythm guitar, and backing vocals, Rob Bailey also played bass guitar whilst Peter Clack played drums on their cover of ‘Baby Please Don’t Go’. Tony Currenti played drums on the other seven numbers. Whilst it might not be the best DC album ever this version is certainly worth tracking down if you don’t already have it amongst the other 3,000 different versions with different covers and track lists.

 

Buy ‘High Voltage’: Here

In other significant news on this very day in 1979, Blondie scored their first UK No.1 album when ‘Parallel Lines’ started a four-week run at the top of the charts, featuring the singles ‘Heart Of Glass’, ‘Hanging On The Telephone’ and ‘Sunday Girl.’ With its iconic album sleeve, a generation of teenage boys fell in love more so when they managed to see the video for ‘Heart Of Glass’. Deborah Harry – vocals, Chris Stein – guitar, 12-string guitar, E-bow, Clem Burke – drums, Jimmy Destri – electronic keyboards, Nigel Harrison – bass guitar and Frank Infante – guitar was the iconic line up who recorded ‘Parallel Lines’ in New York City where the band shared an unbreakable bond and used the city in many of their videos and were forever tied to clubs like CBGB and Max’s.  ‘Heart Of Glass’ was one of the biggest selling singles in the decade reaching number one in over eight major record buying countries.  Amazingly it was only the UK where the album hit the number one spot only reaching number six in their native USA. who knew?

The album has been reissued and expanded several times since its release back in 79 and you can pick up a copy Here

Also, RPM would like to give a shout out and a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday to Billie Joe Armstrong, Born Today back in 1972. Whilst fronting Green Day Armstrong is also a member of the punk rock band Pinhead Gunpowder and provides lead vocals for Green Day’s side projects Foxboro Hot Tubs and The Network. Many Happy returns Mr Armstrong.

Buy Pinhead Gunpowder: Here

Finally, on this very day in 1979, The Clash opened the US leg of their ‘Pearl Harbour ’79’, North American tour at New York’s Palladium. The Clash were keen to embrace the US, though Epic were less enthusiastic despite releasing …Melody Maker writer Caroline Coon paid her own way to New York and set up eight shows in medium-sized venues that mainly sold out. The Pearl Harbour ’79 US tour allowed The Clash to visit key cities. The band took Rock’n’Roll legend Bo Diddley out as support act to make America aware of its musical legacy. “We brought them in and helped to introduce them to people who weren’t aware of them,” Jones told Coon. Diddley got on famously with the band, who hung on his every war story.

 

 

 

 

That was the week that was…

That was the week that was…

Well, we certainly didn’t stand still in the last seven days as we brought you reviews from a range of artist old and new with The Lemonheads starting things off with the second studio album of cover versions entitled ‘Varshons 2‘.  As Evan Dando and Co, head out on a UK tour this week to promote the record RPM gave it the thumbs up as Dando led the band through some pretty diverse waters.  Westerberg, Cave and the Eagles all made it onto the record which as an aside came out in a scented banana yellow version as well.

 

 

It was also a week that saw two live albums hit the death decks at RPM with Metallica lending a ‘Helping Hand’ Where they released a double album with proceeds going to a most admirable cause and helping the most vulnerable in society a real genuine act of kindness that doesn’t get the exposure it truly deserves as the rock stars are often castigated for their excesses but seldom praised when they do reach out with a simple yet effective act of kindness.  So a huge well done from us at RPM as Johnny H gets stuck into the double slice of vinyl trouble.

 

 

The second of our live reviews came when Martin gave The Godfather a good seeing to with their fantastic ‘This Is War’ the once over. describing it as, “Loud Sharp and Beautiful”, is about as close a summery as you can get.  It’s fair to say that it damn near captures the current line up right at the top of their game.  It’s certainly raw it’s certainly loud and no question it has the Godfathers roaring on all cylinders and has you wondering why all live albums can’t sound this good.  Essential listening no doubt about it.

We also brought you a summary of this years Gathering from North Wales as Mike Peters and the Alarm romped through a huge chunk of their back catalogue over two nights with plenty of special guests that included original Alarm Guitar player Dave Sharp, from Texas Ryan Hamilton and 80’s pop rockers Mark Shaws then Jerico. This year’s festivities weren’t without incident as the PA went down twice but it didn’t deter PEters who climbed into the audience with his acoustic guitar and un mic’d got the audience singing along and making the most out of a potentially bad situation and making it a memorable evening no doubt about it.  Gathering twenty-Seven was again a privilege to attend and I can’t wait for 2020 and number twenty Eight.

We also brought you The Spangles album launch show from way up North otherwise known as Harrogate as Ben Hughes had an equally splendid evening with an immensely talented band playing one hell of a debut album.  I for one hope there is a lot more to come from these three guys because their album was easily one of 2018 best releases.

As far as news goes we joined the rock world in wishing Bernie Torme a speedy recovery from his hospitalization from double Pneumonia and hope he’s back to full health as soon as possible. The same for our Australian friend Hayden McGoogan from The Black Heart Breakers who also found himself in Hospital this past week – Get yourselves fit and health please gents and I’m sure I speak for all the writers at RPM in wishing you both speedy full recoveries.

There was also some superb festival news as The Dead Boys were announced as headliners for this year’s Rebellion Festival in Blackpool along with Walter Lure who will be playing L.A.M.F. at the festival and across the channel in Belgium Sjock Festival announced a raft of superb bands added to this years festival including RPM favourites The Hip Priests and Barstool Preachers who play alongside The Hives, Hellacopters, Electric Frankenstein, the Briefs  and Gluecifer. To be fair news wise last week was a bumper week for great rock n roll news.

 

Anyway, that was last week on RPM and as we are always looking forward here’s what you can expect this coming week on the website. We’ve got a couple of bumper interviews with the likes of Slyder from Last Great Dreamers as they announce a lot of dates for 2019 in what appears to be a hugely busy year for the band.  Also, we have a monster interview with “Demons” Matheus Carlsson which should see your Friday seem a lot more enjoyable as we spoke about the past present and future of the band in what also looks like a great year for the band.

As for album reviews we’re once again scouring the globe for great bands and we’ve certainly got those coming at you with the debut long player from ‘Wet Dreams’ reviewed today by Johnny H and there is also the long-awaited long player from Jim Jones & the Righteous Mind’ coming later this week as ‘CollectiV’ has certainly been entertaining RPM HQ and what will be one of the years top albums no question about that. We also look back on some significant happenings this coming week in punk, rock and pop music history so keep it RPM folks for all your turbocharged Rock n Roll!

Stay Sick,

L-U-V RPM

 

Wet Dreams – ‘Wet Dreams’ (Black Pop Records)

Wet Dreams – ‘Wet Dreams’ (Black Pop Records)

Its surely just pure coincidence but in the same month that the game-changing Sub Pop recordings by Green River get a long overdue vinyl reissue this ten-track debut from the – as of right now -unknown Norwegian garage punk rockers Wet Dreams lands on my desk.

What’s the connection I hear you ask? Well, nothing really other than this Wet Dreams album sounds like it could have been recorded as a follow up to ‘Dry As A Bone’, it really is that amazing.

Formed in 2017 and running concurrently with his day job fronting the power poptastic Death By Unga Bunga. Wet Dreams is the sound of Sebastian Ulstad Olsen turning up the Super Fuzz to 11 whilst rejoicing in the melodic delights of sixties psych. Joining him on this journey to the centre of the brain drain are members of FOAMMM, Warp Riders and De Marvells and having already played festivals in Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway you really get the feeling that this is more than just a side project for all those involved

One listen to the album’s lead track ‘Bad Boy’ confirms this, as not only is this a track accompanied by the ludicrous type of video that Unga Bunga specialise in, but also this bad boy (ouch) literally screams along on a buzzsaw guitar riff complete with overdriven vocals that are also oh so sugary sweet, and this evoking the sound of garage punk at its infectious lo-fi best.

It also process to be the perfect appetizer for the full album, with tracks like ‘Blueslata’, ‘Band-Aid’, ‘Radioactivity’ and ‘Roliglata’ all coming on like long lost ‘Nuggets’ or ‘Pebbles’ tracks with certain hints of The Mary Chain and Unga Bunga’s recent UK tour mates Ash all thrown in to the melting pot.

‘Her’ and ‘Blueslata’ up the ante in the overdrive department and both showcase Wet Dreams at their hard-rockin’ best mixing in some Sabbath and Quo whilst still managing to sound like neither of them and thus reinforcing the musical alchemy going on here. Elsewhere ‘Depression’, ‘Beautiful’ and album closer ‘I Told You/Drugs’ display a more out and out punk influence albeit one laced with that essential shot of power pop.

With a running time of 25 minutes, this ten track album takes the old cliché of all killer no filler and rams it down the throat of anyone thinking this is anything other than a full-on garage rock record from a band who are very much looking to take things to the next level with dates in Norway, Europe and the US already being pencilled in for the rest of 2019.

Released at the end of March you can pre-order your copy of ‘Wet Dreams’ via the record label website or via Wet Dreams’ Bandcamp page both of which are linked below.

Tell them RPM sent you!

Blackpop

Facebook

Bandcamp

Author: Johhny Hayward

 

 

 

 

Sjock line up gets interesting

Sjock line up gets interesting

Sjock announces yet more bill busting acts for 2019. Belgium’s longest running festival sees Sjock confirm a raft of headline acts for 2019.  going since 1976 This year has The Hellacopters, The Briefs, The Hip Priests, Electric Frankenstein, The Hives, Gluecifer and The Barstool Preachers just to name a few and all for 80Euro at Tickets

SJOCK 44

FRIDAY! NEW NAMES! TICKETS ON SALE!Let's go!!The Hellacopters SWEGluecifer NORThe Barstool Preachers UKGrindhouse AUSThe Hip Priests UKBaby Shakes USCrackups BEHeathen Apostles USThe Bloodstrings GERPrince Beastly BETickets are on sale from now on! https://www.ticketjes.be/en/Buy/StartWizard?eventId=14See all info on our website!www.sjock.comSJOCK Festival 4412-13-14 july 2019www.sjock.com

Posted by SJOCK Festival on Thursday, 14 February 2019

 

Lester Greenowski – Out Of Tune Out Of Key (Tornado Ride Records)

Lester Greenowski – Out Of Tune Out Of Key (Tornado Ride Records)

Rock n Roll is often meant to be a lot of fun and some artists get it whilst others don’t. Lester comes from a hard-working background where you have to earn your stripes and boy has he earned his. With a fantastic bunch of fellow musicians and friends like Honest John Plain, Wilko Zanni, Davide Ferrario, Francesco-C  to lean on Lester always sounds like his records are the hippest party to be at and Out Of Tune Out Of Key is no different as it sways from good time barroom rock ‘n’ roll like The Boys to Some Hanoi Rocks saxophone  mixed some rollicking piano and at times its not all party party party sometimes like on ‘Until Wrong Turned Right’ his sound reminds me of early Waysted when Fin was bossing it its got elements of the classic 70’s rock of a UFO with a side order of Slade thrown in for good measure.

Songs like the uptempo hard rockin’ ‘Love Me’ would have you punching the air if you were to walk into a bar with the band playing this. Lesters modus operandi is a simple one.  Rock ‘n’ Roll hard and keep smiling but do it to the best of your ability. Don’t do anything clever unless you consider writing catchy hooks and sing-a-long choruses clever because that’s this album in a nutshell. Catchy hooks a plenty, great arrangments, knowing when to throw in a stomping guitar lick or a punky riff or the old classic one-fingered piano roll like on ‘Maybe’ but then again Lester seems to have thrown the full makonky into this one making it dangerous to listen to in confined spaces (be careful out there kids) this is seriously good rock n roll.

 

‘Here She Goes’ introduces some tasty Jonesy like riffola on the intro and has one foot planted into that Professionals camp whilst the other is toe-tapping to be fair that pretty much could be any song on this album. Well, not quite because the title track that sits at the end of this record has a sober opening but soon enough it builds to the big chorus that has the gang arm in arm and singing along before dropping back into the verse.  A fine way to put a full stop on a really enjoyable record. I know Its Only Rock ‘N’ Roll but damn I like it!

Buy It Here

Facebook

Javier Escovedo of The Zeros – Interview

Javier Escovedo of The Zeros – Interview

Legendary Californain punk rockers THE ZEROS will play their first ever dates in the UK next month!

The band they called ‘the Mexican Ramones’ came outta Southern California in 1976. Originally a four-piece line-up that featured guitarist Javier Escovedo who also handled vocals – the middle of the three Escovedo brothers – and Robert Lopez also on guitar. The band signed a record deal to kings of the underground labels Bomp! wh released the single ‘Wimp’ – which was later covered by the Hoodoo Gurus – on the flip was ‘Don’t Push Me Around’(shown below) The band called it quits in 1980, but regrouped for another go and new album in ’95 and have been active once again since 2007. Still featuring Escovedo and drummer Baba Chenelle, RPM caught up with Javier before they hit the UK for a brief word…Photo courtesy of Jacqueline Ramirez

Firstly tell us who’s in the band currently?
The band is Javier Escovedo guitar/vocals, Baba Chenelle drums, Victor Penalosa Bass/vocals
You’re about to play the UK for the first time.  How come its taken you guys so long to get over here? 
Good question. Bomber Booking was the only agency that offered us to play there. We are glad he did. We are excited to finally play there.
What about new music?  Any plans to record?
We recently started recording again. We will put out a 7″ single soon.
Weren’t you booked to play Rebellion a couple of years ago and then you disappeared off the bill? Or have I made that up?
This is the first I’ve heard about that. We would love to play there.
 when you started back in ’77 who were your influences?
Our influences were the velvet underground, Lou Reed, Iggy and the Stooges, David Bowie, Roxy music, Doctor Feelgood, The Modern Lovers, The New York Dolls, Johnny Thunders, T Rex and many more.
What about now what or who are your influences now?
Don’t really have influences in the same way we did as teenagers. We just want to make the best music we can.
What about the future for The Zeros?
The future is not up to us. Hopefully, we will release another full-length l.p. and play some more shows. I’d like for us to play more countries we haven’t been to yet.
so what else have you planned in 2019 apart from coming to Europe?
Right now we are concentrating on recording and getting a new l.p. out.
 As you can see the lineups for these four UK shows are pretty exciting to say the least get a ticket whilst there are still some available remember snooze you lose.
1 Mar – Shacklewell Arms, London (w/ Johnny Throttle & The Speedways)
2 Mar – Temple Of Boom, Leeds (w/ The X-Ray Eyes)
3 Mar – The Chameleon, Nottingham (w/ The Eviltones)
4 Mar – Pipeline Club, Brighton (Randy Savages)

Tickets for the London gig are available here