As far as sleazy punk n roll goes none do it finer than Sweden’s Panzer Princess. Having been in the game since the mid naughties I had the pleasure of reviewing their early releases and then nothing – world domination was put on hold and these sleazy bad boys sort of vanished. Then, all of a sudden out of nowhere I caught sight of a big shiny record being released, and hey presto I got in touch with Johnny (lead vocals) and the new record was winging its way to RPM HQ to annoy the neighbours and reason to throw a party was introduced.
‘A Requiem Singalong’ does have a downside – sadly it only has four tracks on this EP and not a full album with a whole bunch more Rock n Roll to appreciate, that’s the downside. The upside is the band sounds better than ever and has honed their craft and become a lean punk n roll machine inspired by the finest from Hanoi Rocks, Soho Roses, Lords Of The New Church and the Dolls – they rock and roll with the best of them. on the opener ‘Made Me Do’ it’s like a steam train plowing down the track realising the breaks have failed as sparks fly from Gurra Hookers fingers with licks and fills handed down from Berry and McCoy the rhythm section holds it steady as it speeds on by. with some nice additional piano to accompany the backbeats and harmonica honkin’ its a real trip and I love it.
As you can hear ‘Dead Beat’ brings the good times with its rapid twelve-bar riff and chuck berry licks over some traditional lyrics about girls and booze, breakup and good times – it’s not rocket science, it’s Rock and Roll and with some great melodies and gang vocals, it’s a whole lotta fun walking down this well-trodden path. The added piano is a great addition again – top tune!
The record is over way too early but before they go they deliver the exceptional ‘End Of The Lie’ with a great walking bass line. Sure it’s tipping the hat to Hanoi and those who paved the way but it’s about time there was a revival of what happened in and around London in the 80s when it was cool to look like a pirate. On every corner, there was a band with a hollow body guitar and a bottle of thunderbird. Bring it on I say and make sure Panzer Princess are at the front of the queue. If you love a bit of sleazy Rock and Roll then these are the band for you. Fan-fuckin-tastic record.
Author: Dom Daley
Recent Comments