Former NY Loose frontwoman Brijitte West has teamed up with Lester Greenowski, he of The Landslide Ladies, and he who recorded a fantastic album with the legend that was and is Honest John Plain. They teamed up in Italy and recorded fourteen blasts of rock-solid punk n roll, just like Lester and Brijitte know how to from their previous offerings. They’ve not reinvented the wheel here, just gone cruising down the rock n roll highway on an open-top rock n roll dream machine. Former Queen of the LES picked one of the good guys on the scene to partner up and write with because if it’s in yer blood, then it’s in yer blood. The album features 12 new songs, a Dead Boys classic, and an acoustic revisit of Richard Baccus and West’s composition ‘The Luckiest Girl’.

The album kicks off with some pretty hard-rockin ‘ big riffs, but with some sweet harmonies on the BVs, it’s loud, brash and full-throttled, and a real statement of intent to kick proceedings off with. With the opener as something of a loosener, Brijitte dips her toes into where she cut her teeth, singing about NYC, which I bet seems like such a long time ago now; several decades have flown by. To be fair, it wasn’t the Lower East Side of the early punk days, but I bet it could still go toe to toe with most places even 25 years ago, and it’s good to look back, and the song is driven with plenty of punch in the tempo and some great lead breaks on the old six-string.

The production is big, with a massive widescreen on the rhythm section that sits underneath some lovely tone on the guitars that punches through. ‘Some Body’ is snotty, with a great chorus which is pretty much the MO throughout the album. It’s very upbeat and great-sounding, with plenty of clichés to lean on and pin your flag to, and the melodies are pretty much spot on, jumping out left, right and centre. There’s no massive departure, just plugging in and having the best of times writing, recording and playing this very decent bunch of tunes. Turn it up and just enjoy it; this record is a masterclass in people who know what they’re doin’ and know how to deliver the goods.

Songs like ‘Default’ just make me feel good hearing it, with a great subtle melody kicking the song down the line to the sing-a-long chorus and more of that fine guitar blazing away from the verses, holding it together to the big chords leading to that chorus. One of the standout tracks is ‘Kill Me It’s Saturday Night,’ boundless energy, cool melody, and pretty much spot-on riffage always make for great rock n roll; the walk-up to the solo is killer! A song I love to hear.

Hold on, there’s cowbell! A thumping bass line and cowbell now why isn’t there more cowbell in rock n roll? the record has a new favourite track. It’s got a new wave 80s groove and a great chorus ‘OTT’ might just walk off with the prize for killer track tucked away in the depths of this fine record. Move over, Ms West; Lesters got the mic for an all-out thumping slice of punk n roll in the shape of ‘Brutta Bimba Bella’ that is the sound of someone shaking the bottle of Rock n Roll and smashing the top off. Nice change of pace and a riot of a track. Changing the pace again and keeping the record fresh is ‘Looking At You’.

Changing the pace has clearly been a focus on this record, shifting the gears to keep it fresh, and the dreamy ‘Nobody Won’ is further proof, with its measured slower pace and the snare being replaced by a tap on the tambourine as the story unfolds to the climbing beat, another fine, fine tune that showcases what a great voice Brijitte still has; she’s lost none of her power, devilment or ability to keep you leaning in to the stories she’s telling. Hey, hang on, I almost forgot the cover of the Zero-penned classic Dead Boys’ ‘All This And More,’ which just about sums up this record: all this and so much more!

I had high hopes for this record considering the people involved, and it didn’t disappoint at all; in fact, it exceeded expectations, and it’s a baker’s dozen of top tunes that flow really well and show there are still people out there who can deliver a rock n roll record that embraces traditions and the need to just focus on writing top tunes and knowing how to deliver them. Buy it!

Pre-order HERE

Author: Dom Daley