First up is a new video from Guitar player Samantha Fish and a track ‘Bulletproof’ taken from her ‘Kill Or Be Killed’ album due in September
Next up we’ve got the brand new video from Black Star Riders ‘Ain’t The End Of The World’ taken from their forthcoming new long player ‘Another State Of Grace’.
We end up with this fantastic collaboration from Jesse Malin and Lucinda Williams from his soon to be released album ‘Sunset Kids’ due for release at the end of August.
Heavy as a hammer hitting an anvil and full on subscribers to the school of fuzzed out desert psych Rock with a hint of Grunge thrown in for good measure. Reminding me in places of the Doors grooving on Monster Magnet (‘Covered In Dawn’) Rainbows Are Free is a curious name for a heavy Rock band but Whilst they are heavy on groove and soaring vocals in places they also have a psychedelic edge that shines through on plenty of occasions and although I’ve never seen a picture of the band I wouldn’t be shocked to see some guys in trucker hats long flowing unkempt locks and big hipster beards peering through Gibson SG’s and promo pics leaning on big trucks near a dessert. Now Whilst I don’t really want you pigeon hole them the certainly know how to play and the production on this album is as heavy as early Sabbath but there’s more to them than traditionalist heavy rockers.
Of the Eight tracks on offer half of them are there or thereabouts Five minutes long and some several minutes more than that but that’s a lot to do with the style and once they lock into the groove they’re off. ‘Electricity On Wax’ I know or rather I don’t know. Who knows what it’s about? it doesn’t matter anyway. ‘The Sound Inside’ is a brooding slow builder that has hypnotic qualities as it slithers along on a big power chord towards the inevitable freak out but I do like where it settles back into the groove and the bass is huge here. Like a sledgehammer.
Would it surprise you to find out that ‘Lady Of The Woods/Psychonauts’ begins with a cloud of soft synths blowing in the breeze behind some lush picked acoustic chords before a powerful progtastic vocal breaks in as the six-minute-plus tune heads right down the Sabbath path marked heavy as fuck!
The band shows another side as ‘The Nile Song’ is an uptempo rocker more Zep than Sabs. It’s quite a journey to reach the end and is signed off with the mellow noodlings of ‘Eunice’ a psychedelic instrumental that quite literally has bells and whistles. Rainbows are Free is the name rocking out is their game they mix old school hard rock like the metal Gods of Sabbath and Zepplin whilst straddling some prog, Grunge and old school Doors like Psych. One Mans poison will be another man’s medicine and this will have its audience for sure ones who like loud guitars – time changes big grooves and Rock! Go check em out
Author: Dom Daley
Following on from the awesome job Beggars did on the ‘Love’ anniversary it seemed about right for them to get stuck into The Cults ‘Sonic Temple’ when the band reached the top of the Hard Rock tree and played Wembley Arena which seems a lifetime ago now (it probably was). The band enjoyed enormous success with the record and subsequent videos and singles off the album and it looks like once again BB has delivered the goods with these awesome Sets.
The Vinyl BOX SET contains three pieces of vinyl and a cassette plus tour memorabilia and ephemera (replica of original laminate, backstage pass, original press releases, label copy and more). It’s numbered and limited to 3000 pieces worldwide and contains 40 tracks, four of which are previously unreleased. LP1+2 contain the album as originally released. LP3 contains Live At Wembley recorded by the BBC, and the included cassette contains limited-release demos. Four of the live tracks are previously unreleased.
Whilst The FIVE-CD SET contains 53 tracks (including 6 previously unreleased) with the original album on disc 1, alternate edits, mixes, extended versions and acoustic versions on disc 2, limited-release demos on discs 3 & 4 and Live at Wembley recorded by the BBC on disc 5. Six of the live tracks are previously unreleased. It is beautifully packaged in book form with rare photographs and interviews with the band by esteemed journalist James Brown.
Beggars Banquet Webstore
to dovetail the releases the Cult return to the UK for a tour dates below
Wow, every month I start to see what’s out there in the 45 rpm section and wonder why there aren’t any being released or, I wait until the Hip Priests have a single out; which is normally once a month to be fair. Then I get to thinking, man, there aren’t enough I’m going to have to hold ’em over till next month. Then as if by magic, poof, a bunch of 45s lands either on the doormat or through the email.
This month threw up exceptionally high-quality singles and most pleasing there were many made of wax. you know 7″ round things which I love so without further waffle here’s Julys releases…
SUSPECT PARTS ‘You Know I Can’t Say No’ b/w ‘Song For Sadie’ (17 Television) “An Apocalypse Pop super group with ex and current members of The Briefs, Clorox Girls. More Kicks, Radio Dead Ones, Maniac and Red Dons. Here on their brand new single “You Know I Can’t Say No” they combine late 70’s California beach punk and power pop with 60’s garage and bubblegum. It’s a cotton candy-meets-razorblade concoction that goes down surprisingly smooth”. That’s what they said in the press blurb and it’s hard to disagree. Man their long player blew me away and this is more of the same. When rock and roll is in the hands of experts who really really really know what they’re doing then it’s as easy as 1-2-3. Suspect Parts – Record of the month? Too right it is.
Rotten Foxes – ‘Arrive, Raise Hell, Leave’ (Self Release) Brighton’s Rotten Foxes make a ‘fuck off noise’. They play hard and fast and loose and take no prisoners at all. I can’t possibly include the video but I’m sure that’s not where you dip your chocolate biscuit. Its a killer tune and you should be all over this brief exert from the band. ‘Make Me Pretty’ is a cry for help but not even Jim could fix that (Too Soon?) ‘Over The Ropes’ is Exploited meets Motorhead meets Stone Cold Steve Austin – Hell yeah! chug a six-pack n’ lay the smack down and count to three. Killer tune. Rotten Foxes have Rotten hair cuts and perished denim shorts but their Rock and Roll are as Action Rock as anyone. Loud, hard and fast – Get in there! Uncompromising in your face punk as fuck Ave It! I think I love Rotten Foxes – Get em because we hear they won’t be around for long Here
The Speedways – ‘Seen Better Days’/’They Don’t Know’ – Facebook
‘Seen Better days’ gets a new singles mix and aren’t the last band this month to feature a synth running riot over some awesome power pop. It’s no secret how much I love The Speedways and including live favourite ‘They Don’t Know’ is a beautiful thing. That’s exactly how you take on a pop classic, play it like you love it and own it like you wrote it. A Stunning rendition of a stunning slab of perfect pop. Buy it!
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads – ‘Kellys Gone Insane’ (Crocodile Records) Having the original debut solo record reissued with bells and whistles and new tracks recorded around the time (obviously) it makes perfect sense to release a single to promote it, just like Duncan would have done in those olden days when bands made singles to promote their LP. ‘Kellys Gone Insane’ is a belter of a tune I know it and you should too. If you don’t then here’s your chance to pick up a copy. It has two tunes on the B side ‘Pretty Little Rachel’ and ‘Baby Baby’ neither have been on record before so for less than ten pounds whats not to want to own? The lead track first came out seven years ago! Wow, time flys but one thing remains timeless and thats top Rock and Roll and Duncan Reid plays Top Rock and Roll ‘Kellys Gone Insane’ will drive you insane its catchy as hell and will lodge itself in your head – honest!
Kurt Baker Combo – (I Can’t Help) Falling In Love With You (Wicked Cool Records) Its Kurt Baker Combo they don’t do bad songs so it was a no brainer that we were going to love this one. When we got the slightest whiff of a new single and once again wicked Cool has snapped up a great band.
Its great from the opening lead break and throbbing bass line to the snare slap and that’s before Kurt comes in with his new wave drawl. With a great big hook ‘n’ riff and those woohoo! backing vocals, of course, this is a ray of sunshine and another excellent track from KBC. those key stabs remind me of Hot Hot Heat as well which is always welcome – so what’s not to love?
The Hives – I’m Alive/Good Samaritan (Disques Hives) Hooray the Hives are back on wax. Always one of the best rock and roll bands out there on the live front and to be fair they’ve managed to pen the odd banger or two. ‘Good Samaritan’ is classic Hives. With that rapid riff and drum beat with Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist leading the charge, it’s got a killer chorus. it’s great to have the band back sounding fresh and ready for the attack.
Budokan – C’Mon Daddy (Bandcamp) I loved their long player ‘Spin A Little Gold’ and once again these Canadian purveyors of Power Pop have delivered the goods with this classic slab of rock and roll. It’s just a fantastic pop tune played with loud rock and roll guitars. It’s got a great hook and it grooves like a good un. The album came out back in 2012 so I can only presume they’ve been having such a groovy time they lost track of the time between releases who knows. Let’s hope there is a long player on the way folks because these guys are great. Play it loud! Bandcamp
The first video single this month is from South Korean band Bursters with ‘Barriers’ its released as a double A-side single “Barriers / Hero”. Driving metal riffs mixed with instantly memorable melodies and screamed vocals. The band mix the very best of metal with explosive live performances born from consistent touring across Korea. the bband hit the UK this coming week to support the single. K Rock is in the house.
Kettle of Kites – Orchids (Unsigned) Taken from the bands soon to be released album this eco-warrior tune is a haunting new cut that offers a reflection on the blurring of fiction and reality as Earth stands on the precipice of environmental disaster. Deep stuff for a 45. But something different for us here at RPM singles round up so why not get involved and check em out –Facebook
Automatic – ‘Calling It’ (Stones Throw Records) synth punks Automatic take it one step beyond Tubeway Army. The band hail from the underground scene of Los Angeles where they met this is our first taste of the LA new wavers so join us as we catch up with ‘Calling It’ video
Follow Automatic:
Instagram / Spotify
Continuing the theme of new bands on us and ones with new video singles out here are Project Revise with ‘Just a Story’.
Next up we have Swedish Metalheads Narnia and their new single ‘You Are The Air That I Breathe’ – Facebook
Genya Ravan ‘Don’t Go Into The Bathroom’ (Rumbar Records) When I first heard this I thought it was an odd title but in the context of the lyrics, Genya makes perfect sense. I mean I went there once and was horrified that there was no stall door for a start but her ode to CBGB is a fine tune. Genya headed up CBGB Records at the behest of Hilly himself so when she sings the lyrics take notice this force of nature is a pioneer and for that she gets our Kudos. Facebook
The Empty Page – ‘He’s Very Good At Swimming’. After Rags reviewed this on its release here’s the accompanying video for your viewing pleasure.
Autogramm – ‘Bad Day’ (Jarama 45 RPM Records) Canadian power-pop signed to a Spanish label singing Ramones Classic in Spanish now beat that. With an ear-splitting synth leading the charge on this throwback new wave no wave. It’s unoriginal yet nobody else I can think of is doing it these days so totally original that is until you hit their cover of The Ramones ‘I Wanna Be Sedated’ but in Spanish of course. Didn’t see that one coming wow. Mind blown right there. you just have to hear it if you’re a fan of Da Brudas and power pop then you have to check it out. Whilst I’m here these guys are heading to Europe and playing a bunch of shows and they’re not ducking the UK they have a couple of shows lined up here too so my advice is to check em out if you can – Website / Bandcamp
Hardship Anchors / Death Lottery – Split (Freetime Boyz Entertainment Worldwide Inc.) Yeah you know we love to hear new bands and when they reach out with music we’re not familiar with its a beautiful thing. Sneaking under the fence at the 11th hour is this split 7″ all the way from Ft Lauderdale. Pressed on marbled vinyl and blood splattered sleeve with free stickers I’m in all ready before the needle drops. Death Lottery kick it off with an uncompromising wah infused slab of garage punk with wild and reckless solos on opener ‘Cease + Desist’ and it just takes off from there. ‘Trespassin’ is up next and sounding like a really lo-fi misfits horror track its a great track brief and to the point much like all three of their contributions. As for Hardship Anchors, theirs is a slightly less chaotic contribution that doesn’t sound like its driven on adrenalin and has more of an early Replacements vibe happening Evan Dando when he way young hungry and fueled on punk. the final track ‘Fake’ has a bit of Buzzcocks going on which is always welcome round here. Check em out on their Bandcamp page and pick it up.
The Kopek Millionaire (Johny skullknuckles) – Hey Mikki (self Release) Bandcamp When you’re waiting around for your band to get their shit together and you have the means why not fuck around with a classic slab of pop music. Johny gives this 80s pop classic a right roughing up I’m sure you’ll agree. Toni Basil would no doubt be blushing at the compliment paid by Johny who calls it a cover of a cover and a silly one at that. Not that we agree because we love some sloppy rock and roll. Well done Sir now get that band sorted and lets have the new record.
Beechwood – ‘I Know It’s Not Right’ (Alive Natural Sound) Ok we have to sign off somewhere so why not sign off with a direct line of heritage handed down from Johnny Thunders in the shape of Beechwood. They have that NYC cool and Gordon Lawrence sure knows how to channel his thoughts into his music. Regaling a dark time in his life through the song Lawrence said he was happy with the outcome of such a dark experience explaining how he was in such bad shape when he wrote the song, he described himself as broken but he was still able to believe that things would get better; and this was a reminder of that dark time. It’s haunting but mourish and Lawrence certainly has charm and charisma in his songwriting, Not an instant single for sure but one you should check out.
The band are about to embark on a quick tour of Europe with a couple of UK dates added.
FOR MORE INFO ON BEECHWOOD go Here
What’s that musty smell? Ah yes, it’s emanating from the veritable feast of vintage collectables housed in the Pop Culture Schlock archive. For your delectation today I take you back to the Christmas of 1979; a seminal decade of music about to come to an end and give way to the dawn of a more brash, more brazen ten year period…
If you were a good, music-loving boy or girl in 1979 and had a.) done well in school, and; b.) not scratched your big brother’s vinyl, then there was a good chance that you’d find the Rock On! Annual 1980 nestled under the Christmas tree in your modest living room.
“The Rock What Annual?” I hear you exclaim, and you shouldn’t be embarrassed at your lack of knowledge on this subject because, truth be told, Rock On! magazine was a short-lived, oft-forgotten publication… if you’d ever heard of it at all.
Rock On! magazine debuted with an issue cover-dated May 1978. Debbie Harry featured on its cover and the mag – costing a whole 25p – promised a healthy mix of punk, new wave, heavy metal, and prog rock. It kept its promise too as, over the course of seven eclectic issues, Rock On! dished out features and photo spreads on a dizzying cadre of top musical combos; from Status Quo to Sham 69, The Clash to KISS, Rush to The Rezillos. Meat Loaf graced a cover, Ozzy, too, until Issue 7, with Jimmy Pursey as its cover star, and cover-dated November 1978, when Rock On! disappeared from newsagent shelves. The editorial in that final issue wrote of the outrage of cutting off such a desirable publication in its prime but, if anything, Rock On! was a victim of its own blurring of genre lines: readers seemingly wanting specialist publications dedicated to singular strands of the rock ‘n’ roll world rather than this ambitious crossover style.
That final editorial, though, did offer some hope for the future; stating that it was the last Rock On! “in its present form”. Fast forward to around a year later and, in the Autumn of 1979, the true final piece of the Rock On! jigsaw arrived in shops and catalogues to complete the punk ‘n’ prog rocking picture.
With a scorching hot live photo of Thin Lizzy’s Phil Lynott on the cover, Rock On! Annual 1980 (price – £2.00) may well have been jostling for attention on the shelves alongside big-hitting television and film spin-off annuals, but it certainly looked the most badass. It was, the cover screamed, packed with pictures, facts, and quizzes on your favourite rock bands. It did not disappoint.
The heady mix of photo spreads and more in-depth features on select bands really did make Rock On! stand out from its competitors, and this annual amps that angle right up to eleven. The first photo spread was a “Tribute to Vocal Power!!!” (yes, with three exclamation marks) and featured cool live action shots of Joe Strummer, Johnny Rotten, Cherie Currie, Pete Townsend, Willy DeVille, Graham Parker, Joan Jett, and Mick Jagger. A good start, I’m sure you’ll agree.
Next up, a photo diary detailing a “hard band” going “soft” as The Stranglers met their devoted fans, followed by a quartet of stinging live shots of “the band the critics love to hate”, Status Quo. Rock On!’s attitude to those Quo critics could be “summed up in two fingers” readers were informed.
With barely a pause for breath, a six-page A-Z of Heavy Metal feature detailed the prime acts in the genre, from AC/DC to, erm, Wishbone Ash. A-W, then. A few curious names in this run-down, too: Prism, Quartz, and Mahogany Rush rubbing shoulders with the expected likes of Whitesnake, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and, a firm favourite on the turntable at RPM HQ, Uriah Heep. A “Heads Down Heavy Metal Quiz” followed: a select question being “On Your Feet Or On Your Knees was a double live album for which heavy metal superstars?”
A Ten Years of Genesis feature followed, the first in a series of in-depth essays by John Tobler. His similar two-page spread on the history of Queen followed, as did those dedicated to Thin Lizzy, Blue Öyster Cult, Rush, and KISS. The latter, subtitled “Kings of Shock Rock”, wrote of “the forty foot columns of fire that emit from Gene Simmons’ mouth” and, c’mon, if you were eight years old at Xmas 1979 you had every excuse for then falling head over platform heels in love with the idea of the hottest band in the world.
There was a Rock On! reggae report, a fashion guide of sorts where the Quo’s Rick Parfitt spoke of his love of jeans and Hugh Cornwell of The Stranglers of his love of raincoats (!), a Hi-Fi buying guide, a feature on sound engineers, a top DJ article covering John Peel and Anne Nightingale, plus one-page specials on Peter Gabriel and Ken Hensley of the Heep.
A photo spread of Ian Dury swimming (just your seven shots) padded out the pages, but not before an impressive photo set of live Black Sabbath shots appeared, a Star Cars article featuring Steve Jones, Meat Loaf, Midge Ure, and, ominously, Cozy Powell, a “Cult Heroes” feature detailing the likes of Iggy Pop, Nils Lofgren, Todd Rundgren, Tom Petty, and Bruce Spingsteen, and a “Sex ‘n’ Girls ‘n’ Rock ‘n’ Roll” spread featuring Debbie Harry, Joan Jett, Siouxsie Sioux, Linda Ronstadt, Annie Golden, Poly Styrene, Stevie Nicks, and Rachel Sweet.
A “That Was The Year That Was” feature dedicated to 1978 was an obvious leftover from the previous year’s magazine and makes for entertaining if a little sombre reading amongst the other genuinely funny articles. Rock On! was a cool magazine, with its tongue firmly in its cheek and its love of a broad range of music at the forefront of any thinking. Your Uber Rocks, your RPMs are all subconscious descendants of Rock On! magazine.
No annual is complete, however, without a pull-out poster section (even if no kid ever dared pull a poster out of an annual!), and Rock On! Annual 1980 does not disappoint in that department. There are pin-ups of the aforementioned Pursey, Rezillos, Dury, Harry, Clash, and Lynott, plus Bob Geldof, Paul Weller, Freddie Mercury, David Lee Roth, Jon Anderson, Elvis Costello, Paul Stanley, and the Buzzcocks. Great photos too.
The Rock On! Annual 1980 may well be an uncommon piece in the average music memorabilia collection, but it is certainly a worthy one. Copies turn up on the secondary market relatively cheaply and, yeah, you should pick one up if you get the chance. The Rock On! staff were most certainly music journalist mavericks, and we’ve all tried to go there, right? Search for this precious, rockin’ tome… or you might never know how Rick Parfitt’s aunt ironed his double denim.
Thanks for reading, and for the feedback on my first column on the debut Alice Cooper comic. I’ll be back next month with something suitably archaic that the rock ‘n’ roll world tried to forget. Search for Pop Culture Schlock 365 on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook
Arthur Harold Kane Jr. Born February 3, 1949 was best known as the bass guitarist for the Legendry New York Dolls. Kane was an integral part of the band until he was kicked out in 1975., Following the departure of Johnny Thunders and Jerry Nolan.
In 2004, Kane rejoined the surviving Dolls (Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain) to rehearse and play a reunion concert in London, which was the subject of the 2005 documentary New York Doll.
After leaving the Dolls Kane collaborated with Blackie Lawless in Killer Kane, which resulted in the single “Mr. Cool.” Lawless was an old friend from New York City and had replaced Johnny Thunders during the ill-fated Florida tour in 1975.
After the Dolls, Kane was involved in several bands that included: playing bass in the band formed by Sid Vicious, The Idols (with Jerry Nolan), and The Corpse Grinders (with Rick Rivets); and joining Johnny Thunders on a few tours in the 1980s.
In the early 2000s, Kane met filmmaker Greg Whiteley through his work with the Latter-day Saints, and the two became friends. Whiteley commented that all Kane ever talked about was how he wished that he could somehow get the Dolls back together. The idea of doing a film on Kane’s life followed. Coincidentally, in 2004 Morrissey a high-profile fan of the Dolls—offered Kane an opportunity to perform a reunion show with the surviving Dolls (David Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain) at the Royal Festival Hall in London as part of his Meltdown Festival.
When Kane called Whiteley to ask for a ride to the pawn shop to retrieve his bass guitar, Whiteley asked if he could bring along a camera. From there Whiteley filmed Kane’s experiences preparing for the reunion, rehearsing with the Dolls in New York, and reconciling with Johansen, culminating in two sold-out shows in London; which for Kane was all a fulfillment of a nearly thirty-year dream. Whiteley’s footage resulted in the 2005 Sundance featured documentary, New York Doll.
On July 13, 2004, just 22 days after the reunion concert, Kane thought that he had caught the flu in London and checked himself into a Los Angeles hospital, complaining of fatigue. He was quickly diagnosed with leukemia and died within two hours. He was 55 years old. Johansen described Kane as “nonjudgmental, bawdy and holy.”
In 2009 Kane’s autobiography was published entitled, I, Doll: Life and Death with the New York Dolls, with the foreword and epilogue written by Barbara Kane.
Kane met Barbara when he was with the Dolls, and they were married in 1977. Although they were separated for many years, their divorce never became finalized. She was interviewed for the New York Doll documentary, portions of which are interspersed within the film’s narrative.
In 2005 the documentary, New York Dolls: All Dolled Up, was released on DVD. The directors, rock photographer Bob Gruen, and his then-wife, Nadya Beck, owned an early video camera and shot many hours of footage of the Dolls in the early 1970s. Edited down to 95 minutes, the black and white film shows the Dolls in different locales, such as backstage or at an airport, and documents several of the Doll’s live performances in New York City and California. Kane appears in some of the footage wearing a plaster cast on his left arm. This was the result of his volatile girlfriend Connie attempting to cut off his thumb so that he would be unable to play bass anymore. In his autobiography, fellow bass player and Dolls fan Dee Dee Ramone mentioned Kane when discussing Connie, whom he himself later dated. Dee Dee and Connie’s similarly violent and tumultuous relationship would inspire the 1977 Ramones song “Glad to See You Go”. Kane passed away on this day in 2004. If you’ve never seen the Documentary then go see it its funny, enlightening, sad yet uplifting. Arthur Killer Kane RPM salutes you. One of the good guys Gone but not Forgotten.
Well, we’re almost there folks its Sunday on our preview and by now there will be sore heads, aching limbs, sunburn, and ringing ears and aching jaws from having such a good time and laughter that’s usually how Sunday pans out but not necessarily in that order. By now you will have got the hang of how to best navigate your way through the Winter Garden and how best to avoid the heat and there will be some who are only now getting into the swing of things and only just warming up. We’ve already opened a book as to what state our friends Trigger Mcpoopshute will be in before they hit the introducing stage. I just hope Blackpool has enough Special Vat on tap because they will find it and the Karaoke bar. Anyway, I digress.
On with the show. first up will no doubt be a very early start for many as Hands Off Gretel hit the Empress Stage between 12:50pm – 1:30 pm. With their recent album and live shows, they’ve had plenty of praise around these parts and it’ll be great to catch them on such a big stage and big room compared to the tight confines of Clwb Ifor Bach. But wait, get your time warp daps on because there are more clashes than outside a Swansea v Cardiff derby. 1.55 also sees our mates the wonderful Kopek Millionaires return to the festival in the Opera House and hang on those Welsh herberts Trigger McPoopshute are also kicking up a shitstorm over on the introducing stage at 1.15 and if you shout loud enough I’m sure they’ll play ‘Sheep’ and my favourite ‘Skidmarks & Spencer’.
It’s just not fair because Pizzatramp will be causing offense and singing songs about Goths at 2 pm over at Club Casbah or whinging about having their fuckin’ backs being fucked and calling Bono names but I can guarantee they will be entertaining and totally crushing the room. Next up for me will be those filthy garage punk noise bringers Rotten Foxes again on the introducing stage where double denim hot pants will no doubt be the order of the day and songs about Danny Dyer will be belted out for the gathered masses. Around the same time, The Svetlanas will also be delivering the noise over in The Ballroom and they went down very well last year. You could stay put and chill because up next is the pop punk of Teenage Bottlerockets in the Empress. Or no doubt like many will head over to Club Casbah for your annual fix of Dirtbox Disco at 5.10 pm. If you haven’t had enough Hands Off Gretel frontwoman Lauren Tate will be putting on an Acoustic performance in Almost Acoustic but I’d imagine you’d have to get there early as it will be busy.
It’s still very early evening and hopefully, you should be just warming up by about now and pacing yourself. You’ll hopefully have just taken in a bunch of new bands on your radar and awaiting some more established bands who will be along later. There are a dozen bands playing the Introducing Stage on Sunday many of whom I’ll admit to not having heard but will always dip in because its stages like this where the future headliners might come from and who knows, your new favourite band. Isn’t that the beating heart of what Rebellion Festival is all about? You can stay in one venue all day long and come across a whole gambit of bands some you’ll love some you’ll know the name of but have never heard them and others will blow you away and all indoors under the same roof alongside friendly staff who make it such a special place to watch alternative music night after night after night. Anyway, I digress.
The Witchdoktors play their garage punk rock n roll just before Foreign Legion kicks in with their Oi! infused street punk. Weaving around the stages takes some skills that you should no doubt be a Jedi master at by this point so negotiating Conflict, DOA and then King Kurt will be a piece of piss right? Yeah right. and if you’re still in one piece The Motherchuffin’ Dwarves are taking the Casbah stage home tonight and will no doubt devastate what’s left of the audience. I see they’re down for a 55-minute set so it looks like they’re playing twice then kids 😉
Anyway back in the Empress the final curtain call sees CJ Ramone knock out a whole bunch of classics from 7 pm and lets face it he’s never let us down and his new solo album is a bit tasty as well so in fairness throw your laminated stage finder timetable out the window buy yourself a Dark Fruit and just follow your ears and you’ll be taken to a stage that will put a big smile on your face. The Professionals follow CJ then The Skids follow the Professionals but its top trumps time for me because the Damned close the festival that is as long as The Dwarves haven’t raised the Winter Gardens to the ground from the Casbah at the same chuffing time! it’ll be a flip of the coin no doubt or we will have to split review duties and by witching hour it will all be over – done and dusted. Back to our hotels and B&B’s with our pathetic bruised and beaten carcasses dissecting our weekend – our long lost weekend down the musical wormhole that is Rebellion festival. If you’re still in with a chance of going but can’t decide to take it from us you won’t regret it – not for a second (well that might be a lie – your legs might be saying otherwise) There is no other festival quite like it in the UK and we love being a part of it year after year. I’m packed and ready to rock n roll now where did I leave my kiss me quick hat?
Roll Up Roll Up tickets available Here
Grammy Award-winning, multi-platinum selling band The Pretenders featuring the Legendary Chrissy Hynde performs with special guests including Iggy Pop, Shirley Manson of Garbage, Kings of Leon and Incubus, recorded live at the Decades Rock Arena in Atlantic City, NJ.
In Cold Blood: eBook of Punk Legend’s Official Biography Showcases Unseen Photos of New York Dolls’ Johnny Thunders
Nina Antonia’s ‘Johnny Thunders… In Cold Blood’ brings a beautiful, hard-rocking illustrated e-book edition to the official published biography of New York Dolls’ Johnny Thunders. Due for release on July 15th 2019, on what would have been Thunders’ sixty-seventh birthday, the new edition showcases over 120 images (including photos never seen before) to take readers on an illuminating journey through the glam rock pioneer’s life. It also addresses his death and the results of a 1991 autopsy, making it vital reading for anyone curious about Thunders’ mysterious demise, recently the topic of a film, ‘Room 37’.
In 1987, music journalist Nina Antonia finally turned her lifelong obsession with Johnny Thunders into a job, after being granted the rights to publish his official biography. It’s a publication that has seen many different editions and is now being released in eBook format with more new information and exclusive content than ever before.
‘Johnny Thunders… In Cold Blood’ will be published on what would have been the legend’s sixty-seventh birthday, and brings his life full circle with new photographs and revelations about his death in 1991. Currently, it is number one in Amazon.com’s future punk music biographies.
‘Johnny Thunders… In Cold Blood’ is due for release on July 15th, 2019. Copies can currently be pre-ordered from Amazon: Here
Purchase ‘Johnny Thunders Sleeve Notes’, Here
About the Author:
Nina Antonia (Liverpool, 1960) is a former music journalist, who has contributed to Uncut, Mojo, Classic Rock and Record Collector. Nina Antonia’s first book was‘Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood’ in 1987. Since then she’s also written biographies of the New York Dolls, Peter Perrett of The Only Ones, and edited the diaries of Pete Doherty. As well as appearing on Radio One and BBC Six Music, Nina has performed at spoken word events, had a retrospective held at the Barbican and in 2013 lectured on Glam at Tate Liverpool. Nina has featured in various documentaries, including ‘New York Doll’ about Arthur ‘Killer’ Kane and appears in Danny Garcia’s poignant documentary ‘Looking For Johnny’.
In 2016, Nina had her first supernatural piece ‘South-West 13’ published. Essays about the likes of Lord Alfred Douglas and Oscar Wilde continued the theme, followed by her first supernatural novel ‘The Greenwood Faun’. Her most recent book is ‘Incurable – The Haunted Writings of Lionel Johnson, the Decadent Era’s Dark Angel’.
A feature film of ‘Johnny Thunders – In Cold Blood’ is currently in the pre-production stage, to be directed by Jonas Akerlund (the Beyonce, Madonna, Lady Gaga, U2 etc director) .
“The Smartest Chick I ever met.” – Johnny Thunders
“Nina Writes, Seen her Riot.” – Peter Doherty
“Priceless Books for One Such as I.” – Morrissey
“Nina Antonia Makes a fascinating Story, Irresistible.” – Uncut
Further info: https://ninaantoniaauthor.com/ https://twitter.com/NinaAntonia13
We have a review of the Single coming up this Sunday as part of our 45rpm round up. But ahead of that here is the first peek at the fantastic slab of power pop ‘You Know you Can’t Say No’ from Suspect Parts. Enjoy!
You can also order the single Here
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