Well kiddies if you’ve never happened across these two barber Rock and Rollers then this might just be your lucky day because this here live record is exactly how they’re supposed to sound. No studio niceties, no bullshit treatment (apart from the Guns N Roses style crowd noise) Picture this – It’s November of 2019. The Cutthroat Brothers (aka “The Sweeney Todds of punk rock”) are hitting stages across mainland Europe to showcase their brand of two-man hack n slash tunes.
Suddenly, a change of plans! Covid-19 happens and everything grinds to a screeching halt. A global pandemic followed by travel bans and quarantines changes everything overnight, causing The Cutthroat Brothers’ upcoming tour to be postponed. But worry not fiends because they had the good sense to record the last night of that 2019 tour from Belgium and release it in all its finery.
Featuring twelve choice cuts from their exclusive range and leaving something for the weekend its tight and wild and at times right on the bloody button drawing from their two studio albums. The fuzz buzz of ‘Potions’ sounds fantastic and quite exciting as it cuts through the airwaves.
Singer Jason Cutthroat sounds great – full of energy and slashing out the chords takes the songs somewhere different to the studio recordings. Donny Paycheck (ex-Zeke) sounds like ten drummers on the epic ‘Killing Time’.
‘Black Candle’ is menacing but the songs that stand tallest are ‘Wrong’ with a wicked intro and I love the rhythm on ‘Oceans’ as the guitar scuffs and rolls towards the chorus – great stuff. The songs were mixed and mastered by Jack Endino (Nirvana, Mudhoney, Soundgarden) while everyone was quarantined in their respective homes. Making this a hattrick of cuts with The Cutthroat Brothers.
As far as live records go this one is pretty damn good and when this crazy world slows down and we return to live shows and foreign travel maybe these cats can come to Shit Island and dish up a set like the one on this record. I’ll be there and I suggest you do as well Hell we might even get treated to a drum solo like the one on ‘Kill For You’ Not that this kind of behavior should be encouraged but I’ll make the exception here because this one is rather good and it adds to the tension. Ending the set with a blistering and moody ‘King Is Dead’ reminds me of the full-on experience of watching master craftsmen do their finest much like a Gallon Drunk but only two of them and far more menacing (if that’s even possible) Get on it because they’re worth it! Let’s hope that in the coming months this can get a vinyl pressing it deserves.
Author: Dom Daley
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