Kenny recently interviewed Chris Dale about his book and touring with Bruce Dickinson and all things Inside The Skunkworks Machine’.
Buy the book Here
On April 22nd Ginger Wildheart proudly releases The Pessimist’s Companion on Wicked Cool Records. ‘The Pessimist’s Companion‘, featuring the single Stalemate, will be available both digitally and on CD.
“Fresh from a break up, a lonely alcoholic living in a caravan poured his feelings into a collection of songs, as dark as they are confessional. The landscape is more eclectic than its predecessor, Ghost In The Tanglewood, but cut from the same tree.
The Pessimist’s Companion never got a proper commercial release, due to one thing or another, and was hastily mixed and compiled to meet its pre-order deadline. Rough, urgent and entirely in keeping with the subject matter.
The album presented here, still wrapped in stunning artwork by Chris Mars, features a brand new mix, a different running order and five extra songs recorded for the session but not finished in time.
This is a deeply personal release for me. I hope you find something here to warm the colder nights alone.” – Ginger Wildheart.
This official15 track album released on Stevie Van Zandt’s Wicked Cool Records is an aural treat, with no calculated image or reliance on nostalgia. Ginger has created a truly honest album which is an all too rare commodity in today’s world.To celebrate the release of ‘The Pessimist’s Companion’ plays 7 UK shows, with Jon Poole, starting on Sunday 17th at The Cluny in Newcastle and concluding at the Lexington in London on Saturday 23rd.
The Pessimist’s Companion is available to pre-order / pre- save here
Ginger Wildheart April UK shows
Sun 17th Newcastle Cluny
Tickets for Ginger Wildheart | TicketWeb – The Cluny in Newcastle upon Tyne , GB
Mon 18th Edinburgh Bannermans SOLD OUT
Tue 19th Leicester Soundhouse
See Tickets – ‘Ginger Wildheart Acoustic’ Tickets | Tuesday, 19 Apr 2022 at 8:00 PM
Wed 20th Cardiff Clwb Ifor Bach
Tickets for Ginger Wildheart | TicketWeb – Clwb Ifor Bach in Cardiff, GB
Thu 21st Blackpool Waterloo Music Bar
Ginger Wildheart Acoustic Tickets | Thursday, 21 Apr 2022 at 8:00 PM (ents24.com)
Fri 22nd Huddersfield Parish
Ginger Wildheart Tickets | Friday, 22 Apr 2022 at 8:00 PM (ents24.com)
Sat 23rd London Lexington
See Tickets – GINGER WILDHEART ACOUSTIC Tickets | Saturday, 23 Apr 2022 at 7:30 PM
In the summer of 2021, two years into the pandemic, the crew of the Italian festival Punk Rock Raduno managed to bring an open-air 3-day event to their community. The headliners were Giuda, the popular glam-fueled rock’n’roll machine from Rome. This very special performance, for most of the audience the first chance to attend a live show in almost two years, was recorded in high quality and is now being released as ‘Giuda – Live at Punk Raduno‘, out on 13th May via Wild Honey Records/ Striped Records All the hits are there, as is the energy of Giuda’s legendary live shows (you know what we’re talking about if you’ve ever seen them live). Get a taste of this great live recording, with first track ‘ Roll On’. LISTEN TO ‘ROLL ON – LIVE AT PUNK RADUNO’ HERE
The ‘Live At Punk Rock Raduno’ LP series, now at its 7th release, always collaborate with independent punk labels for their releases. This time they worked with Wild Honey Records and Striped Records. Each label, alongside the festival’s own store, will release 300 limited-edition, different coloured vinyl.
Pre-Order BLACK vinyl HERE
Pre-Order PINK vinyl HERE
Pre-Order WHITE vinyl HERE
The story of Giuda begins in 2007 and is inextricably connected with that of Rome’s seminal punk rock band Taxi. When Taxi’s career was cut short by the tragic passing of their drummer, singer Tenda, lead guitarist Lorenzo and bassist (then drummer) Danilo regrouped as Giuda. Their debut album “Racey Roller”, famously described by Robin Wills (The Barracudas) as, “Cock Sparrer twinned with the Equals”, quickly became an underground sensation. Highly praised by publications as diverse as Mojo, The Guardian, Uncut, Rolling Stone and Vice (album of the year), the album remains a true cult classic and an inspiration to the numerous hordes of bovver rockers currently following in Giuda’s wake.
The band released a total of 4 studio albums, the last one “EVA” on the English Rise Above Records and USA Burger Records. From their debut album release up until the present day, the band has completed several European tours and five USA/North American tours, playing more than 400 gigs in total, including triumphant appearances at many major festivals such as Rebellion (Blackpool, UK), PunkRock Bowling (Las Vegas, USA) and Hell Fest (France).
Punk Rock Raduno is the Italian summer festival happening every summer since 2016 in Bergamo, Italy. The event quickly became a must for all lovers of Ramones-inspired American punk, but also featured many different acts, from garage rock to hardcore. More than a hundred bands played Punk Rock Raduno including New Bomb Turks, CJ Ramone & The Manges, The Queers, The Avengers, Pansy Division, Nikki Corvette & The Romeos.
The next edition of PUNK ROCK RADUNO will take place in Bergamo, Italy, on July 14-17 2022. Announced bands include Reigning Sound, The Spits, Chixdiggit!, The Huntingtons, The Methadones, Baby Shakes and Giant Eagles.
GIUDA ON TOUR
12 May – Secret Place TAF – Montpellier, France – TICKETS
13 May – Warmaudio Décines – Lyon, France – TICKETS
14 May – La Maison Bleue / Dirty
8 – Strasbourg, France – TICKETS
30 June – Rote Sonne – Munich, Germany – TICKETS
01 July – Ruhrpott Rodeo – Hünxe, Germany – TICKETS
02 July – Wild At Heart – Berlin, Germany – TICKETS
03 July – Chemiefabrik – Dresden, Germany
05 July – Chelsea – Vienna, Austria
06 July – Immerhin Würzburg – Würzburg, Germany
07 July – LUX Concerts – Hannover, Germany – TICKETS
08 July – Monkeys Music Club – Hamburg, Germany – TICKETS
09 July – Café Central – Weinheim, Germany – TICKETS
10 July – Rössli Bar – Bern, Switzerland – TICKETS
23 July – Fast and Loud festival – Macon, France
The line-up history of Chicago Power Pop legends Enuff Z’Nuff is a complicated thing to follow. In a nutshell; After 15 years and 10 albums singer leaves band – guitarist (not original guitarist) becomes singer. Guitarist quits band – singer rejoins. Singer quits again – guitarist becomes singer again and subsequently quits…bassist and founding member becomes singer. In-between all this, add the usual band antics including drug addiction/stints in rehab, lawsuits, being shafted by record label/band members, and the tragic deaths of 2 band members. Are you still following?
Fair play, Chip Z’Nuff is still holding the Enuff Z’Nuff flag flying high in 2022 and if he looks a bit disheveled in his trippy, hippy attire then, he has good reason to be. Not only is his third studio album as lead singer of Enuff Z’Nuff to be released later this year, he precedes that with this, his second solo album entitled ‘Perfectly Imperfect’.
You could be forgiven for being skeptical when Chip took over lead vocal duties from the estranged Donnie Vie. Yeah, the harmony vocals of Chip & Donnie were sublime, but could the bassist possibly pull it off without his longtime songwriting partner? Well, with 3 EZN albums under his diamond studded belt as lead singer and his second solo album on the shelves, it seems the rose-tinted bespectacled Chip is doing just fine on his own.
Of course, the ghost of his former singer is never far from any EZN related release and this album is no different. The first single ‘Heaven In A Bottle’ is an old Chip & Donnie tune that harks back to the early years of the band and has been doing the rounds in demo form for eons. It’s a typical, mid-paced ode to Cheap Trick, the sort of tune they could knock out in their sleep back in the day. Chip’s trippy, laid-back tones are more subdued compared to Donnie’s Lennon-like rasp, and that feel sets the pace for the whole album.
It’s impossible to review this album and not make comparisons to his past songwriting partner. And Chip doesn’t really help matters on ‘Doctor’ by pilfering the main hook from Donnie’s ‘Light Shine On’ from his 2014 release ‘The White Album’. But that said, the duo co-wrote so many tunes the original idea could be from either of them, I guess.
His reworking of ‘My Heroin’ (cunningly re-titled as ‘Heroin’ here) from EZN’s 1995 album ‘Tweaked’ is quite frankly the highlight of the album. I was skeptical on first listen, as its one of my favourite EZN tunes, but fair play, he somehow improves on it. The original was a bare bones recording, a masterpiece of the acoustic slide, harmonica and gut-wrenching sadness, an ode to the pitfalls of addiction. I didn’t think a full band version would improve it, but somehow, with just the addition of bass and drum tracks, it does.
Of the originals on offer, album opener ‘Welcome To The Party’ brings to mind ‘We’re Alright’ (again from ‘Tweaked’) and is a fine listen. It chugs along on the cool hook, again coming on like a long-lost Cheap Trick poptastic dittie that would not sound out of place on ‘Live at Budokan’. ‘I Still Hail Ya’ has a quirky vibe, it’s full of dreamy pop melodies and euphoric vocalisin’. And I’m still not sure if ‘3 Way’ is a driving song or a euphemism for kinky sex, but it’s one of the more upbeat Power Pop ditties on offer and I like it.
Still dressing like a late 60’s Carnaby Street reject at 53 years old, Chip Z’Nuff is flying high again with a selection of old melodies, reimaginings and new ideas. But listening to ‘Perfectly Imperfect’, I’m left wondering why this album is released under the ‘solo’ moniker? It is no real departure from the signature Chip sound, but it is a departure from the Enuff Z’Nuff signature sound, as are the last 3 albums without his songwriting partner.
If you are an Enuff Z’Nuff fan you will love it I’m sure, but at just 9 songs, it speaks volumes to me that the strongest offerings are the last two on the album; the aforementioned ‘Heroin’, a song Chip wrote a lifetime ago, and a 48-year-old Mott The Hoople song called ‘Honaloochie Boogie’. Maybe it’s just a stop gap to keep the fanbase happy, or one of those ‘contractual obligation’ albums, but as the title suggests, this solo album feels a bit cobbled together, out of time and out of place. But you know what, I do quite like it.
Buy Here
Author: Ben Hughes
‘Last Train Tonight’ is the debut solo single from UK songwriter Marc Valentine. Released on 1 April through his own Arcane Wires label, it’s taken from his forthcoming album Future Obscure.
As frontman of cult British power-pop outfit Last Great Dreamers, Valentine has brought sparkle to venues and turntables alike with his distinctive vocals, wry charm and songbook of secret classics. Now, with his favourite guitar in tow, he’s heading out on a solo adventure, loading his flight case with a fresh set of tunes, and polishing the trademark twinkle in his eye.
Says Marc: “A twist of fate and the things we can’t control. Taking the wrong way home and crossing paths with a bunch of midnight meatheads who can’t comprehend a guy in eyeliner. Demolition smiles and grunting fists, as you fall to the ground with the smell of blood, sweat, piss and beer in your nostrils. I’ve been there once or twice, but somehow always managed to make it home.”
Debut solo album Future Obscure sees Valentine building on his past while expanding his sonic palette, to craft a collection of should-be hits – 7-inch-shaped songs that move both body and mind. Recorded and produced by Dave Draper (Wildhearts, Professionals), and featuring collaborations with Wreckless Eric and The Boys’ Matt Dangerfield, this is a reflective, sometimes defiant album in the golden-era tradition – a pop record from the heart, packed with songs to holler, heal and hold.
‘Last Train Tonight’ is available to presave through all the usual platforms here
Records from the beginning of popular music or modern popular music way back in time called the 1950s. Pre Beatles and Stones, pre-Britpop, pre-grunge. There was always a subculture going on and music was no different and it wouldn’t surprise me for one second that Lux and Ivy would have owned a fabulous and largely unknown record collection. They were hardly easy listening themselves and they drew their songs out of the fringes of music be it Jazz, Blues or pop. You just know it’ll be an interesting and informative ride.
This double CD also comes with a lavish booklet full of poptastic nuggets courtesy of MOJO magazines Davie Henderson.
There are fifty tracks on offer and everyone has the potential to blow minds it’s that far out and lyrically messed up for these modern times(I can picture Lux smirking down on us all). The fact there are two tracks with Tarzan in the title tells you something but as we swing from Jazzy RnR to big ensembles of bloated balladeering to weird Rock n Roll this is something to get the party started for sure.
A lot of music for your hard earned and a CD that will certainly have the guests impressed at your vast taste either that or they’ll be running to the hills and worrying about your eclectic collection.
The early years rama lama Rock n Roll is heavily represented here like the Charms. If you’re familiar with the bop n roll of Chris Cerf then I bow down to your knowledge. Imagine a song called ‘Too Big For Her Bikini’ coming out today. The insta tictokkers would have a lynching squad firing up the torches. To be fair Slim Marbles isn’t just a great name and how didn’t ‘The Switch’ catch on?
Anyway, fill yer boots and your speakers with a hefty slab of good time Rock n Roll. It’ll make you smile and fill your ears with top tunes in a world that gets madder by the day this will cleanse your soul.
Buy Here
Author: Dom Daley
The much-anticipated trip over the bridge to watch The Chats at the Bristol O2 had finally come, after being postponed a number of times due to COVID the place was finally packed full of mullets and Aussie brilliance.
The First support band Dennis Cometti (named after a retired sports commentator) started the carnage as a people crowd surfed their way to the front to ‘on the sauce’ (which is still on repeat in my head) A perfect setup for the evening to come.
After a stop at the bar, Londoners ‘Chubby & The Gang’ send the O2 mental with their souped-up UK HC. It seemed to go by in a flash of strobe lighting, dry ice and dimly lit red lights. With a mix of songs from both albums, Chubby led his band through a pulverising set that fitted in rather well with tonights up for it crowd. Chubby seemed really pumped and up for it feeding off the pit and onto the O2’s large stage, rather than some grubby little club where this style usually lives and thrives. Tonight Chubby & The Gang brought it on to Bristol and went down a treat.
Before placing ourselves out of the bear pit that is the front stalls and go for the safer option and prime spot on the balcony the lights dimmed and out they flew. In an absolute blur of limbs, The Chats hit the stage hard and the only thing moving faster than the songs was the lighting – strobing like crazy sending the pit wilder than a dozen boxing kangaroos. Everything was played at double, nah triple, nah quadruple speed, It seemed like a Chats classics masterclass. Favourites ‘nambored’, ‘temperature’ and ‘mum stole my darts’ sent the Kungfu kicking kids at the front absolutely mental.
With barely time to take a breathe Mr. Sandwith took a trip on some of the multiple liquids flung towards the stage and lay in the pool of beer that had gathered, in excitement he returned to his feet and smashed out a breakneck ‘smoko’ and their newest song, ‘struck by lightning’ and then it seemed to come to a crashing halt. Equipment was broken and chaos was all around which seems like the best way for a Chats show to go.
What felt like a prime frat house punk rock party Australian style – the set length was perfect it was all over and leaving the salivating mob with ‘Pub feed’ was about right. The crowd was duly told to fuck off and the band legged it. Soaked in beers and a cheerio-o their work tonight was done, Bristol was left to come down from The Chats tornado that just tore the O2 a new one. Until next time from a very, very sweaty O2 g’day and goodnight you bonza bunch of noisy swines.
Suzi Quatro is the trailblazing Queen of Rock’ n’ Roll. Not only a global legend who has sold over 55 million records worldwide, she is also a record producer, actress (Happy Days, Minder, Absolutely Fabulous, Dempsey and Makepeace, Rock School), poet, author and radio presenter (BBC Radio 2).
This year, Suzi is celebrating an incredible 58 years in the music business by performing a hit-packed, career-spanning live show at the Royal Albert Hall in London. She said, “I’m honoured to be performing at such an iconic venue. I’ll be playing a two-hour show – so be ready to get royally rocked. I can’t wait!”.
Detroit-born Suzi grew up in a musical family, forming her first band The Pleasure Seekers aged just 14 with her sisters, they recorded three singles.
In 1971, Suzi moved to England to work with celebrated producer Mickie Most. She first came to the attention of the British public as a support act alongside Thin Lizzy on Slade’s first nationwide tour of the UK. Then in 1972, she released her first single as a solo artist – Rolling Stone. She released a string of hits in the years following, including
two Number 1 songs; Can the Can and Devil Gate Drive.
In 1999 Suzi began her radio career with a series of weekly programmes and notable documentaries on BBC Radio 2.
In 2006, Suzi was nominated for Music Broadcaster of the Year at the Sony Music Awards. She is the recipient of the Woman of Valour Award from the organisation Musicians for Equal Opportunities for Women. Suzi was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame (2013) and, in the same year, received the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award at the Detroit Music Awards.
Suzi Quatro continues to perform live, playing 100+ shows worldwide each year.
Purchase tickets for the Royal Albert Hall show: Here
Millie Manders and The Shutup have announced that their new single Not OK will be released this week. Check out the video here.
The single coincides with their support tour with Less Than Jake throughout the UK and Ireland, and their headline tour in May and June.
As we move further into the new normal and as restrictions drop away and we begin the learning process of living in a “post pandemic world” as things move towards becoming endemic, live music has a huge part to play in the healing process, and re-invigorate our thoughts, attitudes and ability to function in a Tory led new world order. Thinking about new world order takes my thought straight to killing joke a band that have constantly pushed against the barriers of genre, attitude and predictability.
I mean as scribes we constantly bounce our thoughts around look for influences get hooks to our writing and try and introduce the reader to band’s they might like based on their current listening, now ask yourself two questions
- Who are the influences that have helped build the Killing Joke sound?
- Who do Killing Joke sound like?
The answer to the first is there aren’t any, Killing Joke are constantly shifting the boundaries of music, they draw their power and intensity from fantastic musicians exploring the scope of their instruments with a frontman looking both inwards and outwards from an almost visionary perspective pulling the threads together.
The answer to the second? No-One !! Killing Joke stand out on their own an enigma pulled together by an enigmatic frontman, present post punk/post modernist future reaching music, moving ever outwards and dictating where music can go rather than following the masses.
Pulling things back there is a support tonight Brooklyn based anglo-American ‘The Imbeciles’
The Imbeciles are: Butch Dante (guitar and backing vocals), Ben Rice (guitars, lap steel, backing vocals), John Kent (lead vocals, bass guitar, backing vocals, drums, percussion), Joshua Lattanzi (guitars and backing vocals), Charlie Culbert (drums).
Youth played bass guitar and co-write the songs on their new album ‘Imbelica’.
Now I have to hold my hands up I didn’t dive in and research them prior through choice, sometimes its worth making your mind up raw without prior influence in the live setting and myself alongside the crowd really took to the band again not really a band you could pin down to a specific genre, at times hinting at REM, at times drawing on the grunge attitude Nirvana in particular, but staying in the Seattle sound with the Meat puppets and Soundgarden again coming through and all underpinned with almost a classic rock sound. The new LP will be well worth exploring and I would urge people to check them out live.
In all the times I’ve seen Killing Joke alongside the H Bomb’s experiences who provided tonight’s photos well into double figures between us ‘Love like Blood’ has only been experienced once and never by yours truly and they only opened with it tonight!!! Fair play and then to follow it with ‘Wardance‘ and ‘The Fall Of Because’ I was a happy man, in fact the whole gig was both intense and relentless, presided over by a frontman on top form, engaging and driven, the intensity just continued to ramp up as the band locked in and by the time we’d gone through ‘Money is Not Our God’ and ‘This World Hell’ we were on fire and then ‘Bloodsport’ just tore the roof off. There were so many highlights until we got to the end of the main set with ‘The Wait’ and ‘Pssyche’.
Time to take a breath and we’re back with Requiem dedicated to Taylor Hawkins, ‘I am the Virus’ and ‘Pandemonium’.
So returning to my initial thoughts Killing Joke are still bang on point as relevant today as they were in the beginning moving and dictating what music should sound like tearing their own path Brutal, intense, challenging and forward thinking as all music should be standing alone an Enigma but one that needs to be experienced by one and all.
Author: Nev Brooks pics Johnny Hayward
Recent Comments