October 2023 – Page 3

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Crymwav – ‘24/7’ EP (Electric Pudding Records)

Comprising of Roger Deering and Lloyd Stewart Casson, two former members from LA glam stompers Smash Fashion, along with Greg Rogers drummer with legendary LA stoners Goatsnake, and bassist Bruce Braddock, Crymwav (and no, that’s not a Dom Daley editing faux pas, it really is spelt that way) are about to release ‘24/7’, a six track EP that is one of the true surprise packages of 2023.

That’s largely because Crymwav somehow manage to not sound like any of the bands the four members have been involved in previously, and instead blend the very finest elements of late 70s/early 80s hard rock with the punk rock spirit of the NWOBHM, whilst not forgetting a sprinkling of arena rock fairy dust to make their tunes immediately stick in your head.

Lead video and EP opener ‘American Carnage’ is an immediate hit with yours truly with its melody lines chock full of thunder and lightning making the band sound like a modern day take on Thin Lizzy, whilst elsewhere there’s more than a hint of Scorpions during their mid-80s prime evident in the excellent ‘Loop Garou’, something which also beggars the question, can we expect the odd human pyramids to appear when Crymwav get to play this bad boy live?

Of the EP’s other three original tracks the thing that keeps popping into my head is how much this EP reminds me of ‘Riggs’, the self-titled record by a fourpiece from Tennessee released way back in 1982. Not that Crymwav sound like Riggs per say, it’s more the fact that to this very day that LP has a truly timeless quality about it, and here songs like ‘Sense of Adventure’ and ‘Mars Fever’ along with the hugely impressive ‘Surfing A Crimewave’ all possess that same eternal glow. It’s that wonderful sound of four guys with their amps cranked up really high, playing songs that simply make everything in life feel great, something which, if there is any justice in this world, you should all get to experience some time soon.

And if this all wasn’t enough, that NWOBHM influence I mentioned earlier fully rears its head in the shape of an EP closing cover of Tank’s ‘Walking Barefoot Over Glass’, a version which retains the blood, guts, and beer charm of the original whilst also giving it a Crymwav twist for 2023, something that would surely have made Tank main man Algy Ward (RIP fella) grin from ear to ear.

Released on October 27^th via Electric Pudding Records, ‘24/7’ is an EP any discerning fan of REAL classic rock music needs to check out. Hit the links below to follow the band and tell them RPM sent you.

https://www.instagram.com/crymwav/

https://www.facebook.com/crymwav

https://www.youtube.com/@Crymwav

https://crymwav.bandcamp.com/

Author: Johnny Hayward

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THE LIBERTINES New album and live shows

‘All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade’ (8th March)

NEW SINGLE – Run, Run, Run (Out Now)

Plus intimate shows in Margate (9th/10th December)

If you want the night to lastThe Libertines are excited to announce the release of their fourth studio album entitled, All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade out 8th March 2024. The release marks the band’s first new album in nine years and opens with the infectious new single, Run Run Run out today Listen Here.

‘All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade’ is available to preorder from: https://TheLibertines.lnk.to/AQOTEEPR
Anyone who preorders the album will be offered the chance to purchase tickets for “All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade’ two days of special acoustic & electric live shows by The Libertines, at the 500 capacity Lido in Margate on Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th December. Also available both nights are VIP after party tickets at the Albion Rooms and Justine’s nightclub, which will include full band DJ sets.

Opening All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade is the firstsingle Run, Run, Run, a huge singalong punk rock anthem, Carl says, “It’s about being trapped, and trying to escape your dismal life, a bit like the man in Bukowski’s ‘Post Office’. The worst thing for The Libertines would be to get stuck in a ‘Run-run-run’ rut, constantly trying to relive our past.”

On All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade, the quartet of unlikely lads have gathered from their new-found homes in France, Denmark, Margate and London to solder a strongest-ever internal bond, and scale new creative heights resulting in the best music of their extraordinary career so far.
Featuring eleven new sparkling Libertines songs with songwriting credits shared among the four band members, the album was produced by Grammy-nominated producer Dimitri Tikovoï (The Horrors/Charli XCX/Becky Hill) and recorded at The Albion Rooms in Margate. Recorded in just four weeks earlier this year during February and March and finished over seven days at La Ferme de Gestein Studios in Normandy, with additional production and mixed by Dan Grech-Marguerat (Lana Del Rey/Liam Gallagher/Paul McCartney).

The story of the making of All Quiet On The EasternEsplanade goes like this – in September ’22 Libs glimmer twins Doherty and Barât decamped to Geejam in Port Antonio, Jamaica. Away from any distraction the chemistry between the infamous songwriting partnership began to bubble in earnest.
Fast forward to February ’23 and Peter and Carl regrouped with rock solid knaves to the rhythm, John and Gary, at The Albion Rooms, and, says Doherty, “we really came together as a band. It was a moment of rare peace and unity, with all the members contributing.”For Carl, the whole Libertines journey has been leading to this moment. “Our first record was born out of panic, and disbelief that we were actually allowed to be in a studio; the second was born of total strife and misery; the third was born of complexity; this one feels like we were all actually in the same place, at the same speed, and we really connected.”
Peter proclaims: “We’re over the moon, and the ball is in the back of the net… and I’m chuffed for the lads!” He adds, more seriously, “I feel like we’ve completed a cycle of some kind as a band, and finally now we can add these songs to the set list, because we’ve got some bangers in there. Now we’ve opened the hotel and used the studio ourselves and it’s all worked out – more Libertines records? I should hope so!”
The album – named All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade as a nod to their hotel’s street address and their enduring love of Erich Maria Remarque’s landmark anti-war novel – is an unequivocal triumph.
All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade will be available on CD, deluxe CD, 12” vinyl in limited edition coloured variants, deluxe double vinyl cassette and digital download.

Pic courtesy of Ed Cook

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Clowns – ‘Endless’ (Fat Wreck Chords)

Right off the bat I have to admit I love a bit of Clowns and having seen them in a small club recently playing songs off this record I got excited and when the promo dropped I cleared my listening list and just slapped this on put on some cycling lycra High Top trainers and a bandana and my dirtiest Dwarves T Shirt and began to axl dance with the stereo on ear destroying volume as the audio kicked in and my ears began to vibrate with excitment as the piano kicked in on ‘Endless’, wait! what Piano? Hell yeah motherfuckers piano it was like a punk rock opera was going off and lighting fireworks in my head seconds before the album kicked off proper and ‘Formalydehyde’ tore through the ether and the sceam made my eyes cross. Do something to be something is the mantra and we’re off. I colide with a wall but its ok I am still conscious. three minutes fly by with a familiar intensity and the band go through every hardcore cliche known to man with some exquisite noodling on the guitar solos almost takes my head off before turning the gas up a notch or ten. Superb opener.

The album ebbs and flows really well and they’ve not just thrown this together and they’ve tried to expand on what they do and up to this point have done oh so well. Combining classic metal riffage with hardcore is a place where Clowns sit comfortably and the vocals and screams are next level.

Your senses will be pulverised from start to the finish all via some epic choons like the power riffs of ‘Scared To Die’ that Priest would kill for also ‘Thanks 4 Nothing’ is melodic hardcore and a real pleaser it’s so energetic and if you play it early in the day you’ll have boundless energy for the next 24 hours it sounds huge. However, if you think that was huge wait until ‘Bisexual Awakening’ rips through your speakers beating its chest fiercely loud and proud, epic! and heavy as fuck!

Hell ‘I Got A Knife’ even has horns honking all over the place. They borrow the Hives vibe on ‘Z3r0s&0n3s’ hell they turn up the goodness on ‘Sarah’ with a breakout riff that is fuckin huge I mean Bronx huge and that’s always a good thing. They are freewheeling downhill on the brutal thrash around ‘Deathwish’ and show the metalheads that there is more to the scene than Metallica if the Yanks could riff like this then throw in a zylaphone middle eight before scooting off on a fierce solo with dive bombs and before thrashing out then hell, I’d buy into it. Hold on to your studded wristband and bullet belt because ‘Enough Is Enough’ is Thrash as fuck.

Wait, what ‘Quicksand’ is acoustic guitars leading into some dreamy guitar soloing before breaking out. Keeping you on your toes is the name of the game but hold on there is a nearly nine-minute weird ending upon us to sign off in classic Clowns fashion. ‘A Widow’s Son,’ for a moment I did wonder what the fuck has my promo been corrupted with ads have I got to pay a premium subscription? Nope, its Clowns the mad fuckers. A narration from the ‘Casefile’ podcast, it’s the story of Ned Kelly putting to music a real head fucker of a song to be fair. Some might call it weird and they’d be right it is but hey it’s a new Clowns album and as they say down under it’s a ripper. Buy It!

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Author: Dom Daley

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The Pleasure Dome – ‘Equinox’ (Hound Dawg! Records)

Bristolian three piece playing dark post grunge noise in the time honoured tradition often unhinged – always on the edge from the frantic slightly psycotic intro of ‘Pass The Parcel’ claiming we aint getting any younger and whats the point paves the way for the frantic dash to the finale with some fine screams and hypnotic riffing is a very decent opener.

There is a vulnerability about the songs a fragility behind the screams and desperate loose melodies of ‘Down The Alley’ as the thumping driving bass line and drum beat hold down whilst the often wild guitars turn to a hushed middle eight. Like fellow Bristolians Idles they throw convention out of the window and do their own thing and it works well. At times it reminds me of alternative bands like Libertines mixed with the obvious Seattle leanings of early Nirvana and Mudhoney it’s a very engaging listen.

The artwork is bleak and cold but the music is far from cold and at times is a burning skip of the 90s and beyond youth culture all melting in one burning inferno.

There is a live and urgency about the songs felt particular well on ‘Vampire Of The Night’ with its drone thud and the energy is raised on ‘Psychodrama’ as it franticly thrashes around with a tightness that wouldn’t work at all if it was loose but the fills sound great bristling with energy and plenty of punch.

‘What a shame (Cocaine)’ is a strong sidestep in the middle of the album in case you were flagging it slows down and is sparsely delivered with a decent melody. Of course, it breaks out it had to. Great song though.

‘Boiler Room’ is a chance for everyone to shake off any fatigue as the rumbling bassline and monotone vocals give you a much-needed kicking as the chorus swings in all directions. There’s a good ebb and flow to the second half of the album as all roads lead to the finale of the epic nearly ten minutes of;No Guts No Fame’ with its acoustic intro breaking into the smash of the loud bit with screams and throbbing bass line it’s a great way to end your record as it reaches its climax before heading back down a lou reed rabbit hole before hushing into one final ending. Enjoyed that unpredictable and satisfying album.

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Author: Dom Daley

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Venom – ‘Live From Hammersmith Odeon Theatre’ (Dissonance/Cherry Red Records)

To understand just how influential (and indeed shocking) Venom, Newcastle’s very own masters of mayhem and metal, were back in the early to mid-‘80s you simply need to read Shane Embury’s sleeve notes which accompany this soon to be released reissue of the band’s second Hammersmith Odeon headline show from 1985. As sixteen-year-olds Venom really was the band we all wanted to be in, and alongside the Napalm Death man’s words of wisdom, Antton Lant (brother of Venom frontman Cronos/Conrad and one time drummer with the band too) also shares some insight into what it was like to not only grow up around, but also eventually be a part of, such a musical phenomenon.

With both musicians perfectly setting the scene for the madness to begin, I take a trip back in time and let Abaddon, Cronos and Mantas whisk me on the rip ride that was their World Possession Tour Part 2.

I was lucky enough to ride on the wings of the Hydra (or Fred Day’s mini bus to be exact) and catch Venom live on this very tour, attending the Birmingham Odeon show two nights before this Hammy O gig, this being a hastily arranged jaunt after the UK leg of the tour had been curtailed (and the Cardiff show I had front row tickets for was axed) following the band’s shock announcement that most of the venue’s booked wouldn’t allow the band to use their full pyrotechnic overloaded production. And having also been lucky enough to have witnessed the legendary Seventh Date of Hell show at Hammersmith Odeon back in the June of 1984, and still trying to grow my eyebrows back following that hotter than hell show, I was not about to miss the Godfathers of Black Metal return to the UK stage…so off to England’s second city we set. More of which in a second.

With the concert film having been initially released as ‘Alive in 85’ by Embassy video and then subsequently re-released on numerous formats by various companies over the years, this is, as far as I’m aware, the first time a UK record company have been audacious enough to bring together both the audio and the video from the band’s October 8^th show into one hell of a value for money set. The live package capturing fifteen of the nineteen songs the trio played that night in London and fully utilising a multi camera unit to get (perhaps a little too) up close and personal with the band to showcase the metallic maelstrom that Venom always has been.

Then, newer tracks from the band’s fourth album ‘Possessed’ like set opener ‘Too Loud (For The Crowd)’, the anthemic lead single ‘Nightmare’ and a blistering ‘Satanachist’ all fit in faultlessly alongside such genre defining classics as ‘Black Metal’ and ‘In Nomine Satanas’ and whilst the show is nowhere near as chaotic as that initial Hammersmith headliner, what it lacks in levitating drum risers and bleeding/smashed guitars it more than makes up for in the band’s supersonic punch. The trio sounding and looking nothing like a band about to lose its guitarist (and resident ninja it would appear) watching the DVD once again.

The pyrotechnic bursts are conserved for a colossal sounding ‘7 Gates of Hell’ and the final flurry of ‘Bloodlust’ and encore ‘Witching Hour’, and I have to be honest and say that I distinctly remember coming away from the Birmingham show feeling somewhat underwhelmed by the band after the sonic and visual assault on the senses I had previously witnessed them deliver (it also didn’t help their cause that the Paul Baloff fronted Exodus supported them on the night and totally destroyed the place) but here thirty eight years on and without any of those “in the moment” distractions I found this ‘Live From Hammersmith Odeon Theatre’ to be one of the most rewarding (if that’s the right word to use here) re-issues I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing this year.

So, in the words of the mighty Cronos, “Come on, turn it up!”

‘Live From Hammersmith Odeon Theatre’ is released on 27^th October 2023 via Dissonance/Cherry Red Records.

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Author: Johnny Hayward

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Gary Moore – ‘Back To The Blues’ (BMG)

The first time on wax and spilled over two heavy-weight records ‘Back To The Blues’ was what Moore did best. He could be his authentic best and his passion for the origins of the loud guitar blues shines through. His playing is passionate and sympathetic and to be fair to the guy his vocals were’t too shabby either.

The opening salvo of ‘Enough Of The Blues’ and the smokey horn honkin of ‘You Upset Me Baby’ is a joy. Clearly a student of what went before him and blazing a path for those who followed Moore dishes up tone and fast fret fingering a plenty and even for a casual listener its uplifting and joyful hearing how Moore tackled the Blues.

Be it the upbeat and funky ‘Cold Black Night’ or the more traditional slow backroom meet me at the crossroads style of ‘Stormy Monday’ Moore could pull it all off with style and a convincing touch that many missed by a mile. ‘Ain’t Got You’ has a strut that the likes of Aerosmith pulled off before him.

He always had a well turned in ballad up his sleeve and ‘Picture OF The Moon’ nails it here. ‘Looking Back’ shows how the likes of Vintage Trouble could have been had they had the chops and cut the shapes insted of trying their hand at pure pop Moore has swing and the tone is massive.

With three bonus cuts to entice fans in from the original release sees a single edit of ‘Picture Of The Moon’ and two live cuts. Fans of da Blues and Gary Moore will be all over this and with added sleeve notes its a must buy for the rock fans out there.

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Author: Dom Daley

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Singles Club – (R)October

Ash/The Subways – ‘Oh Yeah’ (Alcopop) Ash and The Subways come together to present the Oh Yeah Squared limited 7″ vinyl release, just as the pair are about to embark on a co-headline tour of the UK and Europe together. A classic pop song is a classic pop song and The Subways do it well to be fair. Tickets are on sale now here.

Virginmarys – ‘Where Are You Now (Self Release) John Hughes inspired video for single ‘Where Are You Now?’ is a taste of what to come with a planned new studio album release in the works set for 2024.

The Virginmarys are currently out on the road for a mammoth 2 month support tour of Europe and the UK with The Sisters of Mercy.

The Casanovas – ‘Lover’ (Rubber Records) Rockin like Dokken Melbournes The Casanovas are in love with big guitars and everything cock rock as ‘Lover’ heads for radio plays with the top down on their hot rod as they cruise towards the release of their new album with this mid paced Kiss style rocker.

Lifted from their new album ‘Backseat Rhythms’ which was produced by Ron Niven which might give you an indication of how this is gonna sound.

Brad Marino – ‘Lucy’ (Rum Bar Records) Taken from the forthcoming full length album release ‘Grin and Bear It’ pouring on tap November 2023!! Its supreme quality power poppin rock n roll from Brad as he delivers a master class in scuffed up power pop with schoo bop vocals its a song about a girl, obviously and its delivered with premier quality – to wet the apetite for the long player which is also sure to be top notch.

Gyasi – ’23’ (Alive Natural Sound) Retro Glam Rock n Rolla Gyasi releases an epic EP full of bombastic licks n drum rolls and so heavy are the platform boots theyve pushed on through to a sound vortex thats taken them back in time to a pre digital age where analogue is king and boys with electric toys Rock the Fuck out with much gusto and not a hint of irony. the title track ’23’ is Glam as it gets from the piano tickling intro through the scuffed guitar melody to the cha cha cha.

Its divine darlings but worry not Rockers because the two live cuts of ‘Kiss Kiss’ are full throttle bamalama ding dong. howling guitars n big BV’s. Then a live cut of ‘Teacher’ is dry ice wafting, feather boa shaking, atmospheric struttin before ‘Fast Love’ brings things to a climax. Quality! not quantity.

Tigertailz – ‘A Little Bit Of Rock’ (Self Release) Quite the departure for UK Glamsters Tigertailz as they take it back to the old school Rockin out with some Rock n Roll royalty in the form of Verden Allen from Mott The Hoople on piano. A bit of soul and a big sound. they don some paisley shirts instead of spandex and turn in a very decent tune so horns in the air kids and lets rock out.

Rileys L.A. Guns – ‘The Dark Horse’ (Golden Robot Records) Rileys Guns preview the title track from their forthcoming album due early next year sees the band thunder through a solid slice of Cock Rock with a steady beat and chugging riff. a decent effort once again to be fair. With a chorus that you can see coming from yonder but its not a big dated gang vocal effort but a subtle laid back one which compliments the song. Good effort.

The Slackers – ‘Kill You’ (Pirates Press) An imaculate laid back slab of skank with that heavy thumping Dub bass line drilling you down and making your feet move back and fore whilst the horns stab through the haze on what is a masterclass of a single and how to do this properly.

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Random Hand New video, Album & live shows

CELEBRATE THEIR 20^th ANNIVERSARY WITH NEW SELF-TITLED ALBUM DUE SEPTEMBER 29^TH VIA BOMBER MUSIC

PRE-ORDER THE ALBUM HERE

Twenty years in, and top of their game, West Yorkshire, Keighley-bred ska punk icons Random Hand are coming in hot with their fifth album! Their bodies may be creaking with grey hairs beginning to show, but the vitality and relevance of their music isn’t changing one bit. Refined and confident, the band’s new album, due September 29th via Bomber Music, is set to redefine their place as one of the UK’s most significant and dependable punk bands.

20 years ago, as the seemingly unstoppable third wave of ska punk came crashing down on the world of popular music, only to leave a misunderstood scene in its wake, Random Hand worked tirelessly on keeping the spirit of the bands that inspired them alive and kicking. Tearing full throttle through the UK punk scene with their ferocious in your face ska-punk-metal mayhem, stops along the way in the USA, Canada, Russia and all over mainland Europe have displayed a band with a relentless touring schedule. The band have played countless festivals including Reading, Leeds, Slam Dunk, Rebellion, Guilfest, Glastonbury, Boomtown Fair, 2000 Trees, Mighty Sounds and toured alongside the likes of Less Than Jake, Reel Big Fish, Propagandhi, Big D & The Kids Table, Voodoo Glow Skulls etc. They played their 1000th show in July 2011 and were nominated for the AIM award for ‘Hardest Working Band’ (they came a close second to Frank Turner). They have recorded 3 sessions for BBC Radio 1.

Having taken a brief pause from touring to pursue solo projects after the release of 2015’s ‘Hit Reset’ album, the band are raring to return to the fray with gigs confirmed for September and October, and the highly anticipated release of their fifth album.

“We pushed ourselves to breaking, then further still,” explains bassist Joe Tilston. “We stopped to recover and then came back with a passion and energy we didn’t think possible. Random Hand have now played over 2000 shows and we are currently curating a series of our own HandFests across the UK this year, the first in Leeds in February sold out two days in less than 45 minutes.

“Once we started writing the new album, we hit a groove like in the years the band first started,” continues Joe. “Things felt so natural and exciting again. Working with Andy Hawkins, who helped us craft ‘Hit Reset’ was the obvious choice. We loved making that album, but recording an album you know you’re not going to tour is a very different experience. This was exciting, potential was oozing out of every session, that didn’t feel stunted or a waste. The choice to call it ‘Random Hand’ felt like a bold statement for album five and two decades into a career. But we feel that good about it, it defines all we’ve done, and we believe it stands as tall as anything else we’ve ever created, if not taller. With all the other great things happening in ska punk in the international scene and in the UK, makes it feel like this album couldn’t be timed better.”

The first taste of these new recordings comes with ‘Lifejackets’, an infectiously joyous body shakin’ tune that, like much of Random Hand’s music, masks a serious and weighty message.

“It’s a song about the gap between us and those at the top,” states Joe. “For the video we played out in a retro encounter with a tyrannical salesman, who ruins everyone’s day. We descended on one of the empty shops, that litter Keighley’s Highstreet. Closed like a time capsule from the 2008 financial crash, it served as the perfect location for our throwback adventure. It was colder in there than the nice sunny day outside, but we were all dressed like cretins so we stayed in and shivered. But we knew we were onto something special with the talented people we were working with, getting the best out of us.”

Watch the video for ‘Lifejackets’ HERE:

Album Pre-order HERE:

Catch Random Hand live at the following dates:

September

28 Nottingham, The Cold Store

29 Norwich, Arts Centre

30 London, The Dome HANDFEST

October

1 Bristol, The Fleece

5 Manchester, Rebellion

6 York, The Crescent

7 Glasgow, Garage Attic

8 Newcastle, Think Tank

Find Random Hand online:

WEBSITE /FACEBOOK /TWITTER /BANDCAMP /BOMBER MUSIC

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Sabbath announce ‘Hand Of Doom’ collection

BMG are announcing a new Black Sabbath eight vinyl boxset called ‘Hand Of Doom’, that features the bands classic albums released from 1970-1978 on picture disc vinyl, limited to just 3,000 copies, to be released via BMG this coming December 1^st.

Comprising some of BLACK SABBATH’s most powerful albums ever produced, “Hand Of Doom” features the “Complete Original Black Sabbath 1970-1978” collection on picture disc for the first time. The highly collectible set contains the band’s self-titled debut (1970), as well as the multi-platinum “Paranoid” (1970), the platinum albums “Master Of Reality” (1971),”Vol 4″ (1972), and “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” (1973), the gold-certified “Sabotage” (1975), alongside “Technical Ecstasy” (1976) and “Never Say Die!” (1978).

Order Here

“Hand Of Doom 1970 – 1978” includes each album’s artwork printed on Side A. The self-titled debut, “Vol 4”, “Technical Ecstasy” and “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” feature the original back album artwork on Side B. “Paranoid”, “Master Of Reality” and “Sabotage” features an album-era photo of the band. The collection also includes a large color poster of the band taken in Los Angeles during the summer of 1972 while the band was recording “Vol 4”.

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Ruts D.C – ‘ElectrAcoustic Volume Two’ (Sosumi Recordings)

Follow 2021’s ‘ElectrAcoustiC’ album with a second volume of acoustic interpretations that delves into their back catalogue as both The Ruts and Ruts DC, and also reimagines some of the choice cuts from their new ‘Counterculture?’ album from last year. Segs Jennings and David Ruffy knock out a master class in reinventing electric songs acoustically. Returning to Perry Vale Studios in Forest Hill, South London, the album was once again recorded by former Vibrators bassist Pat Collier and mixed and mastered by Greg Wizard Fleming. The mantra of if it ain’t broke don’t fix it serves these gentlemen well as they kinda fix a sound that aint so much broke but reimagined.

Whilst Ruts DC’s reputation as an awesome live electric band they aren’t strangers to stripping it back to its most basic unplugged sound as back in 2014 they took to the intimate 12 Bar stage to do just that.

More recently they took this version of the band’s songs to the large surroundings of the prestigious Opera House stage at Rebellion Festival this year, Ruts DC’s catalogue of songs lends themselves perfectly to this unplugged vibe and reimagined they take on a new lease of life and certainly a whole new feel and appreciation for how good these songs are.

In 2022, the band finally followed 2016’s ‘Music Must Destroy’ album with their acclaimed new album ‘Counterculture?’, giving Ruts DC a whole new arsenal of songs to strip-down and refocus but not forgetting their history and back catalogue.

Gathering at drummer David Ruffy’s house with guitarist Leigh Heggarty, the band sat together and went through songs from the present, and the past, testing what would work well in the acoustic setting. Cherry-picking some choice moments from ‘Counterculture?’ they reached back to the original Ruts days to revisit ‘Backbiter’, the anthemic ‘Staring At The Rude Boys’ and a sublime ‘Love In Vain’.

The band doesn’t shy away from their often painful look early days when Malcolm passed and the 1981 album ‘Animal Now’, recorded soon after Owen’s tragic passing, with Segs taking over on lead vocals. It was understandably a really tough time for the band, but the music lives on and in many ways has thrived since with time an appreciation of just how good these songs are. Reclaiming them in different guises and treating them with respect and giving them a new lease of life must be a great feeling because they do sound fantastic, and the likes of ‘Despondency’, ‘Mirror Smashed’ and the rarely played single ‘Different View’ given this new acoustic life but whilst being stripped back they are no less powerful and that’s down to the class songwriting and the masterful playing.

A fantastic album that deserves your attention and turntable time – Buy It!

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Author: Dom Daley

December 2023 tour:

Thursday, 7th December – COLCHESTER – Arts Centre

https://tinyurl.com/2wda2hzz

Friday, 8th December – DUBLIN – The Workman’s Club

https://tinyurl.com/2p9mep5x

Saturday, 9th December – BELFAST – Voodoo

https://tinyurl.com/2t2xmk94

Sunday, 10th December – LONDON – The Garage